A/HRC/52/30 United Nations General Assembly Distr.: General 13 March 2023 Original: English Human Rights Council Fifty-second session 28 February–31 March 2023 Agenda item 3 Promotion and protection of all human rights, civil, political, economic, social and cultural rights, including the right to development Good practices in national criminalization, investigation, prosecution and sentencing for offences of torture Report of the Special Rapporteur on torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment, Alice Jill Edwards* Summary In the present report, the Special Rapporteur on torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment, Alice Jill Edwards, examines the obligations of States to criminalize, investigate and prosecute acts of torture and other ill-treatment, identifies major challenges standing in the way of impartial, prompt, transparent and effective investigations and presents a range of State practices. The Special Rapporteur places a special emphasis on the participation and protection of victims and witnesses and presents a range of actionable recommendations. The report also presents an overview of the activities of the Special Rapporteur since taking up her mandate on 1 August 2022. * The present report was submitted after the deadline in order to reflect the most recent developments. GE.23-03126 (E) 100323 130323