Human Rights Council
Resolution 8/8.
Torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading
treatment or punishment
The Human Rights Council,
Reaffirming that no one should be subjected to torture as defined in article 1 of the
Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or
Punishment, or other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment,
Recalling that freedom from torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading
treatment or punishment is a non-derogable right that must be protected under all
circumstances, including in times of international and internal armed conflict or internal
disturbance, and that the absolute prohibition of torture and other cruel, inhuman or
degrading treatment or punishment is affirmed in the relevant international instruments,
Recalling also that the prohibition of torture has been recognized as a
peremptory norm of international law,
Recalling further that a number of international, regional and domestic courts
have held the prohibition of cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment to
be customary international law,
Noting that, under the Geneva Conventions of 1949, torture and inhuman
treatment are a grave breach and that, under the Statute of the International Criminal
Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia, the Statute of the International Criminal Tribunal
for Rwanda and the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court, acts of torture
can constitute crimes against humanity and war crimes,