Unifeed
UN TORTURE
STORY: UN / TORTURE
TRT: 02:17
SOURCE: UNIFEED-UNTV
RESTRICTIONS: NONE
LANGUAGE: ENGLISH / NATS
DATELINE: 20 OCTOBER 2015, NEW YORK CITY / RECENT
RECENT, NEW YORK CITY
1. Aerial shot, exterior United Nations Headquarters
20 OCTOBER 2015, NEW YORK CITY
2. Various shots, press briefing in progress
3. SOUNDBITE (English) Juan Ernesto Mendez, Special Rapporteur on Torture and other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment:
“Truth telling is only one of the obligations of the state. When it comes to torture, the states are also obliged to investigate and prosecute and punishe those who may be responsible, and that aspect of the obligations of the United States, remains unfulfilled.”
4. Med shot, press briefing in progress
5. SOUNDBITE (English) Juan Ernesto Mendez, Special Rapporteur on Torture and other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment:
“Solitary confinement is a very difficult problem and perhaps we cannot aspire for a very radical solution but we can aspire to some incremental changes that would probably go a long way in eliminating this matter.”
6. Wide shot, press briefing in progress
7. SOUNDBITE (English) Juan Ernesto Mendez, Special Rapporteur on Torture and other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment:
“When it’s prolonged or indefinite, or when it is applied to children or to people with mental disabilities, or to women who are pregnant or feeding children,it amounts to cruel or inhuman and degrading treatment at the very least, and when it’s very prolonged, it amounts to torture.”
8. Med shot, press briefing in progress
9. SOUNDBITE (English) Malcom Evans, Chair of the Subcommittee on Prevention of Torture:
“They don’t know whether they are an asylum seeker or an irregular migrant, what they actually know is that they are a person going from a horrendous situation trying to seek something better. Other people at some point will start putting categories on them, but they don’t see it that way. What’s most important is that when people are in this situation, that they are treated humanely and properly”.
10. Med shot, press briefing in progress
11. SOUNDBITE (English) Malcom Evans, Chair of the Subcommittee on Prevention of Torture:
“At the technical level we need to see much better and more appropriate management of cases to bring them quickly and effectively to trial. That is so often not the case. Indeed the so-called pre-trial detention, in many situations, seems to be no-trail detention. Is there really an intention that this people will be brought to trial through a criminal justice system? I don’t know. More importantly they don’t know either, and that is a problem.”
12. Wide shot, end of press briefing
The UN Special Rapporteur on Torture Juan Ernesto Mendez said on Tuesday (20 Oct) some instances of prolonged and indefinite solitary confinement may amount to torture.
Mendez made the comments during a press briefing at the United Nations Headquarters in New York, during which he spoke about his latest report on torture and extraterritoriality.
The Special Rapporteur said in the past there were attempts by states to read very narrowly some of the provisions included in the Convention Against Torture (CAT) and that one of reasons to draft a new report, was to foster a better interpretation of the CAT, consistent with the object and purpose of the treaty, such as preventing torture from happening.
Asked to comment on the United States’ record in preventing and punishing torture, Mendez said, “truth telling is only one of the obligations of the state. When it comes to torture, the states are also obliged to investigate and prosecute and punish those who may be responsible, and that aspect of the obligations of the United States remains unfulfilled.”
Mendez said he was waiting for a renewed offer to visit the detention facilities in Guantanamo, after he turned down an initial invitation, as the terms of the visit were unacceptable. These included a guided tour of only some of the sections of the centre, and no possibility of speaking to the inmates.
Furthermore, speaking about solitary confinement, Mendez said it was a very challenging problem with no radical solution in sight, but rather “incremental changes that would probably go a long way in eliminating this matter.”
“When it’s prolonged or indefinite, or when it is applied to children or to people with mental disabilities or to women who are pregnant or feeding children, amounts to cruel or inhuman and degrading treatment at the very least, and when it’s very prolonged it amounts to torture,” Mendez added.
At the press briefing, the Chair of the Subcommittee on Prevention of Torture, Malcom Evans said his report had looked at the situation of refugees and irregular migrants, and those in pre-trial detention.
“They don’t know whether they are an asylum seeker or an irregular migrant, what they actually know is that they are a person going from a horrendous situation trying to seek something better. Other people at some point will start putting categories on them, but they don’t see it that way. What’s most important is that when people are in this situation, that they are treated humanely and properly,” Evans said.
Meanwhile, speaking about people in a pre-trial situation, Evans said there was an urgent need for better and more appropriate management of cases, in order to bring them quickly and effectively to trial. However, he said “that is so often not the case. Indeed the so-called pre-trial detention, in many situations, seems to be no-trail detention. Is there really an intention that this people will be brought to trial through a criminal justice system? I don’t know. More importantly they don’t know either, and that is a problem.”
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