UN / TORTURE

UN Special Rapporteur on Torture Nils Melzer said it was the responsibility of Saudi Arabia and Turkey to establish the facts in the case of Jamal Khashoggi adding that, “If no solution can be found in conducting a credible and objective investigation on that level, then perhaps at some point international mechanisms should get involved.” UNIFEED

• Categories: News & Features / News Stories / Unifeed
• Video Length: 00:02:35
• Production Date: 16 October 2018
• Asset Language: English
• Subject Topical: HUMAN RIGHTS; TORTURE AND OTHER CRUEL TREATMENT
• MAMS Id: 2270216
• Parent Id: 2270216
• Alternate Title: unifeed181016f

Description

STORY: UN / TORTURE
TRT: 2:35
SOURCE: UNIFEED
RESTRICTIONS: NONE
LANGUAGE: ENGLISH / NATS

DATELINE: 16 OCTOBER 2018, NEW YORK CITY

Shotlist

FILE - NEW YORK CITY

1. Wide shot, UNHQ exterior

16 OCTOBER 2018, NEW YORK CITY

2. Wide shot, press room
3. SOUNDBITE (English) Nils Melzer, Special Rapporteur on Torture, United Nations:
“The prohibition of torture and ill-treatment has been severely undermined by policies and practices in areas such as counter-terrorism, extraordinary renditions, or irregular migration, and policies that are perceived to bring short-term benefits but actually are implemented at the cost of seriously weakening the protection of human rights and the rule of law; and even public security and safety in the long run.”
4. Med shot, journalist asking question
5. SOUNDBITE (English) Nils Melzer, Special Rapporteur on Torture, United Nations:
“If no solution can be found in conducting a credible and objective investigation on that level, then perhaps at some point international mechanisms should get involved. I think we are a little bit early in the process to come to a definite conclusion there because, obviously, this is a very delicate issue, and I think we should give the involved States time, under public scrutiny, to come to a conclusion on how they want to address this problem.”
6. Med shot, journalist taking notes
7. SOUNDBITE (English) Nils Melzer, Special Rapporteur on Torture, United Nations:
“Families are being separated, and then the asylum procedure is being drawn to an unbearable length of three years or something like this; and the family is being told: ‘we can only join you together if you leave, you go back voluntarily.’ Now how voluntary is that? I think there are plenty of practices like this that deliberately employ emotional suffering in order to cooers persons and deter them from applying for asylum or other forms of stay.”
8. Wide shot, press room
9. SOUNDBITE (English) Nils Melzer, Special Rapporteur on Torture, United Nations:
“We, I think, have to be honest we also see certain erosion and a certain increase of tolerance, even in public opinion, that, you know, torture, it is sometimes argued to, it works. Right? We have heard that argument, and it is a very dangerous argument because international law does not prohibit things that don’t work, it prohibits things that work and that are being done because they work but they may work for the wrong purposes. Torture does not work to find the truth, but it works to break people, to intimidate people, and to control people.”
10. Wide shot, press room

Storyline

UN Special Rapporteur on Torture Nils Melzer said it was the responsibility of Saudi Arabia and Turkey to establish the facts in the case of Jamal Khashoggi adding that, “If no solution can be found in conducting a credible and objective investigation on that level, then perhaps at some point international mechanisms should get involved.”

Speaking to reporters in New York today (16 Oct), Melzer said it was extremely important to establish the fact in the case of the missing Saudi journalist before making conclusions. He stressed that it was “a little bit early in the process to come to a definite conclusion there because, obviously, this is a very delicate issue” adding that the States involved should be given time, “under public scrutiny, to come to a conclusion on how they want to address this problem.”

The Special Rapporteur said the prohibition of torture and ill-treatment has been “severely undermined by policies and practices in areas such as counter-terrorism, extraordinary renditions, or irregular migration, and policies that are perceived to bring short-term benefits but actually are implemented at the cost of seriously weakening the protection of human rights and the rule of law; and even public security and safety in the long run.”

He noted that States were in some cases using detention as a tool to force potential asylum seekers and other irregular migrants to leave. He added, “Families are being separated, and then the asylum procedure is being drawn to an unbearable length of three years or something like this; and the family is being told: ‘we can only join you together if you leave, you go back voluntarily.’ Now how voluntary is that? I think there are plenty of practices like this that deliberately employ emotional suffering in order to cooers persons and deter them from applying for asylum or other forms of stay.”

In response to a question on global trends, Melzer said social media and increased accessibility to information have helped improve human rights protections but noted that there was also a “certain erosion and a certain increase of tolerance, even in public opinion,” in claims that torture works. He said this is a “very dangerous argument because international law does not prohibit things that don’t work, it prohibits things that work and that are being done because they work but they may work for the wrong purposes.” He stressed, “Torture does not work to find the truth, but it works to break people, to intimidate people, and to control people.”