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Prohibition of torture and other ill-treatment from an extraterritorial perspective 2015, para. 57
- Paragraph text
- The obligation to provide an effective remedy applies "irrespective of who may ultimately be the bearer of responsibility for the violation", which is essential to ensuring that all persons, including migrants and non-citizens, are afforded their fundamental rights without discrimination. States' obligations to provide redress are both substantive and procedural, wherein States must establish judicial or administrative bodies capable of determining a torture victim's right to redress, awarding such redress and ensuring accessibility of these forums to victims (A/69/277). In the case of migrants, the recommended principles and guidelines on human rights at international borders developed by the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights note States' obligation to afford remedies against removal orders where there are substantial grounds for believing that the persons removed would be at a risk of torture or other ill-treatment if "returned to, readmitted, or subject to onward return to a place where they might be at such risk" (guidelines 9), and further to ensure that torture and ill-treatment survivors are referred to proper rehabilitation services.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Movement
- Person(s) affected
- Persons on the move
- Year
- 2015
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Working methods, thematic priorities and vision for a meaningful anti-torture advocacy 2017, para. 39
- Paragraph text
- Finally, the Special Rapporteur is also interested in researching how to better assist States in preventing and investigating acts of torture and other ill-treatment suffered by refugees, asylum seekers and other irregular migrants at the hands of non-State actors such as traffickers and smugglers.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Movement
- Violence
- Person(s) affected
- Persons on the move
- Year
- 2017
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Working methods, thematic priorities and vision for a meaningful anti-torture advocacy 2017, para. 35
- Paragraph text
- In this context, the Special Rapporteur intends to look with a renewed degree of scrutiny into the particular risks of torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment faced by irregular migrants in today's world. He will do so keeping in mind the New York Declaration for Refugees and Migrants, adopted by the General Assembly on 19 September 2016, in which States committed to protect the human rights of all refugees and migrants.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Civil & Political Rights
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Movement
- Person(s) affected
- Persons on the move
- Year
- 2017
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Working methods, thematic priorities and vision for a meaningful anti-torture advocacy 2017, para. 34
- Paragraph text
- This rise in the number of forced displacements is paralleled by a growing and worrying tendency around the world to criminalize irregular migration, to deter applications for asylum and to detain people on the move. In this context, refugees, asylum seekers and other irregular migrants have become more vulnerable to human rights violations, including torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Movement
- Person(s) affected
- Persons on the move
- Year
- 2017
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Working methods, thematic priorities and vision for a meaningful anti-torture advocacy 2017, para. 33
- Paragraph text
- Conflicts, violence, persecution, poverty and food insecurity are driving unprecedented waves of people to cross international borders in a desperate search for safety. According to the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, in 2015 alone, 65.3 million individuals were forcibly displaced worldwide, the largest number since the Second World War.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Food & Nutrition
- Humanitarian
- Movement
- Poverty
- Person(s) affected
- Persons on the move
- Year
- 2017
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Children deprived of their liberty from the perspective of the prohibition of torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment 2015, para. 85p
- Paragraph text
- [With regard to the vulnerability of children deprived of their liberty and policy reform, the Special Rapporteur calls upon all States:] To take into consideration any trauma or exposure to torture or other forms of ill-treatment that child migrants have experienced prior to being detained;
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Health
- Humanitarian
- Movement
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Persons on the move
- Year
- 2015
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Children deprived of their liberty from the perspective of the prohibition of torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment 2015, para. 85o
- Paragraph text
- [With regard to the vulnerability of children deprived of their liberty and policy reform, the Special Rapporteur calls upon all States:] To ensure that unaccompanied migrant children are immediately provided with guardianship arrangements;
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Movement
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Persons on the move
- Year
- 2015
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Children deprived of their liberty from the perspective of the prohibition of torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment 2015, para. 85n
- Paragraph text
- [With regard to the vulnerability of children deprived of their liberty and policy reform, the Special Rapporteur calls upon all States:] To prohibit the use of immigration detention as a method of control or deterrence for migrant children;
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Movement
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Persons on the move
- Year
- 2015
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Children deprived of their liberty from the perspective of the prohibition of torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment 2015, para. 59
- Paragraph text
- States frequently detain children who are refugees, asylum seekers or irregular migrants for a number of reasons, such as health and security screening, to verify their identity or to facilitate their removal from the territory. Sometimes, children may be inadvertently detained because there is a failure to distinguish between child and adult migrants, such as when children are unable to prove their age. The Special Rapporteur has previously noted with concern that unaccompanied child migrants are systematically held in detention at police stations, border guard stations or migration detention centres instead of being held in reception centres, which are in practice often not numerous enough or are overcrowded (see A/HRC/16/52/Add.4, paras. 68-69). Most of the unaccompanied minors are not adequately informed about asylum procedures or their rights, do not have access to legal counsel or guardians, and are generally ignorant of the system. Furthermore, the procedure to identify minors and to assess their age and vulnerability appears to be completely inadequate, as many children reported being registered as adults (see A/HRC/16/52/Add.4, paras. 68-73 and CAT/C/USA/CO/3-5, para. 19).
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Movement
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Persons on the move
- Year
- 2015
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Prohibition of torture and other ill-treatment from an extraterritorial perspective 2015, para. 43
- Paragraph text
- States' non-refoulement obligations also embrace fundamental procedural obligations and rights that cannot be bypassed. First and foremost is the obligation to offer individuals a fair opportunity to make claims for refugee or asylum status, including the right not be returned to places where they risk being subjected to torture or other ill-treatment. In addition, there is the right to challenge detention and potential transfer (Committee against Torture, Arana v. France) on the basis of fear of mistreatment in the receiving State, which may be understood as a substantive guarantee of non-refoulement, part of the right to an effective remedy and inherent in the right to due process of law (Inter-American Court of Human Rights, United States Interdiction of Haitians on the High Seas). This challenge must take place prior to transfer (Human Rights Committee, Alzery v. Sweden), before an independent decision maker with the power to suspend the transfer during the pendency of the review and must be an individualized procedure incorporating timely notification of potential transfer and the right to appear before this independent body in person (Agiza v. Sweden). This inquiry is separate and independent from the determination of refugee status or grant or refusal of asylum.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Movement
- Person(s) affected
- Persons on the move
- Year
- 2015
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Prohibition of torture and other ill-treatment from an extraterritorial perspective 2015, para. 69
- Paragraph text
- The absolute prohibition of non-refoulement applies at all times, even when States are operating or holding individuals extraterritorially, including border control operations on the high seas. The procurement of diplomatic assurances, which are inherently unreliable and ineffective, cannot be used by States to escape the absolute obligation to refrain from refoulement. The Special Rapporteur calls upon States to assess non-refoulement under the Convention against Torture independently of refugee or asylee status determinations, so as to ensure that the fundamental right to be free from torture or other ill-treatment is respected even in cases where non-refoulement under refugee law may be circumscribed. States are required to afford individuals fundamental procedural obligations in connection with their non refoulement obligations, including, but not limited to a fair opportunity to state claims for refugee or asylee status and the right to challenge detention and potential transfer on the basis of mistreatment in a receiving State (a) prior to transfer; (b) before an independent decision maker with the power to suspend the transfer; and (c) through an individualized procedure incorporating timely notification of potential transfer and the right to appear before this independent body in person.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Humanitarian
- Movement
- Person(s) affected
- Persons on the move
- Year
- 2015
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Gender perspectives on torture and other cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment or punishment 2016, para. 70s
- Paragraph text
- [With regard to women, girls, and lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender persons in detention, the Special Rapporteur calls on all States to:] Take individuals' gender identity and choice into account prior to placement and provide opportunities to appeal placement decisions;
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Gender
- Movement
- Person(s) affected
- Girls
- LGBTQI+
- Women
- Year
- 2016
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Children deprived of their liberty from the perspective of the prohibition of torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment 2015, para. 85m
- Paragraph text
- [With regard to the vulnerability of children deprived of their liberty and policy reform, the Special Rapporteur calls upon all States:] To ensure that immigration detention is never used as a penalty or punishment of migrant children, including for irregular entry or presence, and to provide alternative measures to detention that promote the care and well-being of the child;
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Civil & Political Rights
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Movement
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Persons on the move
- Year
- 2015
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Children deprived of their liberty from the perspective of the prohibition of torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment 2015, para. 63
- Paragraph text
- An essential safeguard against torture and other forms of ill-treatment is the availability of multidisciplinary and qualified staff working in children's institutions. Inside the law enforcement, institution and migration systems, children are more vulnerable to human rights violations than adults because of the manner in which judicial and other officials deal with children.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Movement
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Persons on the move
- Year
- 2015
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Working methods, thematic priorities and vision for a meaningful anti-torture advocacy 2017, para. 40
- Paragraph text
- The Special Rapporteur intends to contribute to the ongoing reflection on the links between forced migration and torture. To this end, he hopes to conduct consultations with relevant stakeholders with a view to preparing a thematic report addressing the specific issue of torture and ill-treatment faced by migrants and refugees. Through this report, the Special Rapporteur hopes to contribute to the overall efforts of the international community towards the adoption of a global compact for safe, orderly and regular migration by 2018.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Movement
- Person(s) affected
- Persons on the move
- Year
- 2017
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Children deprived of their liberty from the perspective of the prohibition of torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment 2015, para. 66
- Paragraph text
- Effective complaint procedures are an important safeguard against torture and other ill-treatment in all places of detention for children. According to article 37 (d) of the Convention on the Rights of the Child, children, including migrant children, have the right to prompt access to legal aid and other appropriate assistance, as well as the right to challenge the legality of the deprivation of their liberty before a court or other competent, independent and impartial authority, and to a prompt decision on any such action.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Movement
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Persons on the move
- Year
- 2015
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Children deprived of their liberty from the perspective of the prohibition of torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment 2015, para. 42
- Paragraph text
- Many States continue to hold children and adults in the same facilities, in particular those in pretrial detention and police custody, but also during transportation or in the context of immigration detention. Moreover, the continuous trying and sentencing of children as adults and the lack of specialized juvenile facilities have resulted in numerous children being placed in adult prisons. Disciplinary and other administrative rules and procedures are often applied, regardless of child status.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Civil & Political Rights
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Movement
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Year
- 2015
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Prohibition of torture and other ill-treatment from an extraterritorial perspective 2015, para. 12
- Paragraph text
- Extraterritorial State acts (or omissions) - whether lawful or unlawful - often have a significant impact on the fundamental rights of individuals outside their borders, thereby implicating States' responsibilities under international human rights law. State actions that produce significant extraterritorial effects merit analysis through the prism of international human rights law. Such actions can include cross-border military operations or use of force (A/68/382 and Corr.1); the occupation of foreign territories; anti-migration and anti-piracy operations; peacekeeping, policing or covert operations in foreign territories; the practice of detaining persons abroad; extraditions, rendition to justice and extraordinary rendition; and the exercise of de facto control or influence over non-State actors operating in foreign territories. All these scenarios can involve the commission or risk of torture or other ill-treatment as defined by the Convention, international humanitarian law, international criminal law or customary international law. Of particular concern are States' attempts to undermine the absolute legal prohibition of torture and other ill-treatment by evading or limiting responsibility for extraterritorial acts or effects by their agents that contravene their fundamental legal obligations; to narrowly interpret treaty jurisdictional provisions; and to dilute well-established obligations to ensure and fulfil positive human rights obligations whenever they exercise control or authority over an area, place, individual(s) or transaction.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Humanitarian
- Movement
- Person(s) affected
- N.A.
- Year
- 2015
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Review of the standard minimum rules for the treatment of prisoners 2013, para. 43
- Paragraph text
- The maintenance of an official registry has been and remains one of the fundamental safeguards against torture or other ill-treatment. Although Rule 7 provides for an obligation to ensure proper registration, it lacks a provision obliging strict adherence to registration from the very moment of apprehension and transfer to police custody; the duty to have a comprehensive and accessible record of everyone deprived of liberty (International Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance, art. 17 (3)); information regarding the time and place of arrest as well as the identity of the arresting officials; the state of health upon arrival at the detention centre; and records of when the next of kin and a lawyer were contacted and visited the detainee. It also lacks a provision requiring accurate information about the custody and whereabouts of persons, including transfers, available promptly to the detainee, his or her relatives and his or her counsel (Body of Principles, principle 12), as well as registration of information on the circumstances of death of prisoners and the location of their remains (International Convention on Enforced Disappearance, art. 17 (3) (g)). Furthermore, Rule 7 (2), which obliges prison authorities to not receive a person in an institution without a valid commitment order, should be revised. The detainee should be admitted into a lawful place of detention and the person in charge of that institution is responsible for admitting the person concerned and immediately notifying a judge.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Movement
- Person(s) affected
- Families
- Year
- 2013
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Gender perspectives on torture and other cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment or punishment 2016, para. 32
- Paragraph text
- Upon interception or rescue, migrants and refugees tend to be criminalized and detained in substandard and overcrowded conditions amounting to torture or ill-treatment. Unsanitary conditions and inadequate medical care, including lack of access to reproductive care, affect women in particular. Many facilities fail to separate female and male prisoners, leading to heightened risks of sexual violence from other detainees or guards (A/HRC/20/24). Lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender migrants are also vulnerable to abuse on the basis of their sexual orientation and gender identity.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Gender
- Health
- Humanitarian
- Movement
- Violence
- Person(s) affected
- LGBTQI+
- Persons on the move
- Women
- Year
- 2016
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Torture, ill-treatment and coercion during interviews/ Universal protocol for non-coercive, ethically sound, evidence-based and empirically founded interviewing practices 2016, para. 79
- Paragraph text
- Given that particular groups are more vulnerable during questioning, the protocol should contain specific provisions for, among others, children, women and girls, persons with disabilities, persons belonging to minorities or indigenous groups and non-nationals, including migrants (regardless of migration status), refugees, asylum seekers and stateless persons. The vulnerability of persons should be promptly identified for special consideration of their needs to be reflected in the conduct of interviews and implementation of additional safeguards.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Movement
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Ethnic minorities
- Girls
- Persons on the move
- Women
- Year
- 2016
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Working methods, thematic priorities and vision for a meaningful anti-torture advocacy 2017, para. 54
- Paragraph text
- Throughout his tenure, the Special Rapporteur intends to continue some of the thematic work streams initiated by his predecessors, such as the envisaged protocol on non-coercive interviewing and other issues arising in the area of police custody and pretrial detention. Furthermore, the Special Rapporteur will also endeavour to widen the protection space for victims of torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment. To that end, he intends to take up a number of issues that have not yet received systematic attention from the international community, such as torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment occurring in relation to forced migration, in extra-custodial settings and at the hands of non-State actors.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Movement
- Person(s) affected
- N.A.
- Year
- 2017
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Working methods, thematic priorities and vision for a meaningful anti-torture advocacy 2017, para. 47
- Paragraph text
- In addition, an increasing number of States delegate part of their law enforcement, intelligence and military operations to private military or security companies. Outsourced tasks and functions may range from the protection of specific persons, objects and infrastructure to running facilities for the processing of asylum seekers or even entire detention facilities for criminal suspects and convicts, and may even include the use of force. In this environment, allegations of individual contractors' involvement in serious human rights violations - including participation in torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment - continue to emerge. It is therefore important to recall that States cannot absolve themselves from international legal responsibility for acts of torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment carried out by private military or security contractors operating on their behalf.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Civil & Political Rights
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Movement
- Person(s) affected
- Persons on the move
- Year
- 2017
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Working methods, thematic priorities and vision for a meaningful anti-torture advocacy 2017, para. 38
- Paragraph text
- The Special Rapporteur fully endorses the long-standing jurisprudence and doctrine stating that the absolute prohibition against refoulement contained in the Convention against Torture is stronger than that found in refugee law under article 33 of the 1951 Convention relating to the Status of Refugees. This absolute prohibition means that persons may not be returned even when they may not otherwise qualify for refugee status under the 1951 Convention or domestic law. Accordingly, non-refoulement under the Convention against Torture must be assessed independently of refugee or asylee status determinations, so as to ensure that the fundamental right to be free from torture or other ill-treatment is respected even in cases where non-refoulement under refugee law may be circumscribed.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Movement
- Person(s) affected
- Persons on the move
- Year
- 2017
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Working methods, thematic priorities and vision for a meaningful anti-torture advocacy 2017, para. 37
- Paragraph text
- The Special Rapporteur will also closely monitor the conditions under which some irregular migrants, including asylum seekers and refugees, are being returned to their countries of origin or relocated to countries of transit under readmission agreements negotiated with countries that may have committed gross human rights violations, including torture. In doing so, the Special Rapporteur will advocate for the full application of article 3 of the Convention, which provides that no State party shall expel, return ("refouler") or extradite a person to another State where there are substantial grounds for believing that he/she would be in danger of being subjected to torture, and that for the purpose of determining whether there are such grounds, the competent authorities shall take into account all relevant considerations including, where applicable, the existence in the State concerned of a consistent pattern of gross, flagrant or mass violations of human rights.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Movement
- Person(s) affected
- Persons on the move
- Year
- 2017
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Working methods, thematic priorities and vision for a meaningful anti-torture advocacy 2017, para. 36
- Paragraph text
- Of particular interest to the Special Rapporteur's mandate will be the use by many, if not all, Governments of detention as a migration management tool in arrival, transit and removal centres. During his fact-finding visits, the Special Rapporteur intends to visit places where irregular migrants are held with a view to ensuring that they are not subjected to treatment and conditions of detention amounting to torture or other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment. The Special Rapporteur is of the view that monitoring both official and de facto places of detention where irregular migrants are held would be instrumental for assisting authorities in addressing possible cases of abuse and improving the conditions of life of this population.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Movement
- Person(s) affected
- Persons on the move
- Year
- 2017
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Children deprived of their liberty from the perspective of the prohibition of torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment 2015, para. 81
- Paragraph text
- The Special Rapporteur recommends that States adopt child-friendly administrative and criminal court procedures and train police officers, border guards, detention staff, judges and others who may encounter children deprived of their liberty in child protection principles and a better understanding of the vulnerabilities of children to human rights violations, such as torture and other forms of ill-treatment. Special mention should be made of girls, who are particularly vulnerable, and to special groups of children, such as minorities, disabled children and migrants.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Civil & Political Rights
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Movement
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Girls
- Persons on the move
- Persons with disabilities
- Year
- 2015
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Children deprived of their liberty from the perspective of the prohibition of torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment 2015, para. 80
- Paragraph text
- Within the context of administrative immigration enforcement, it is now clear that the deprivation of liberty of children based on their or their parents' migration status is never in the best interests of the child, exceeds the requirement of necessity, becomes grossly disproportionate and may constitute cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment of migrant children. Following the advisory opinion of the Inter-American Court of Human Rights on the rights and guarantees of children in the context of migration and/or in need of international protection in 2014, the Special Rapporteur recalls the different procedural purposes between immigration and criminal proceedings, and that, in the words of the Court, "the offenses concerning the entry or stay in one country may not, under any circumstances, have the same or similar consequences to those derived from the commission of a crime." The Special Rapporteur therefore concludes that the principle of ultima ratio that applies to juvenile criminal justice is not applicable to immigration proceedings. The deprivation of liberty of children based exclusively on immigration-related reasons exceeds the requirement of necessity because the measure is not absolutely essential to ensure the appearance of children at immigration proceedings or to implement a deportation order. Deprivation of liberty in this context can never be construed as a measure that complies with the child`s best interests. Immigration detention practices across the globe, whether de jure or de facto, put children at risk of cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment. Furthermore, the detention of children who migrate to escape exploitation and abuse contravenes the duty of the State to promote the physical and psychological recovery of child victims in an appropriate environment. Therefore, States should, expeditiously and completely, cease the detention of children, with or without their parents, on the basis of their immigration status. States should make clear in their legislation, policies and practices that the principle of the best interests of the child takes priority over migration policy and other administrative considerations. Also, States should appoint a guardian or adviser as soon as the unaccompanied or separated child is identified, and maintain such guardianship arrangements until the child has either reached the age of majority or has permanently left the territory and/or jurisdiction of the State (A/HRC/20/24, para. 41). While the Special Rapporteur acknowledges that, in certain circumstances it is possible for States to place children in a shelter or other accommodation when it is based on the purpose of child care, protection and support, this should not become a proxy for expanded unnecessary restrictions to the liberty of child migrants and families. States are required to favour measures that promote the care and well-being of the child rather than the deprivation of liberty. Facilities that grant accommodation for migrant children should have all the material conditions necessary and provide an adequate regime to ensure comprehensive protection from ill-treatment and torture, and allow for their holistic development. Migrant children should be separated from children who have been accused or convicted of criminal offences and from adults. The Special Rapporteur notes, however, that separating child migrants from unrelated adults can sometimes itself result in harm by depriving children of important interactions; ample opportunities for broader human interaction and physical activity must therefore be given to unaccompanied migrant children. When children are accompanied, the need to keep the family together is a not sufficient reason to legitimize or justify the deprivation of liberty of a child, given the prejudicial effects that such measures have on the emotional development and physical well-being of children. The Special Rapporteur shares the view of the Inter-American Court of Human
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Civil & Political Rights
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Movement
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Families
- Persons on the move
- Year
- 2015
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Children deprived of their liberty from the perspective of the prohibition of torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment 2015, para. 67
- Paragraph text
- With regard to migrant children, authorities routinely impede their access to lawyers, non-governmental organizations, service providers, interpreters and other sources of information and protection. Furthermore, children often never meet with their appointed guardian because they are deported before their representative arrives. In some cases, the report of a child's ill-treatment is routinely ignored by the official guardians. States have similarly failed to implement a legal right to representation for children detained in health-care settings. Even when States provide a legal right to review, it generally does not cover children placed with parental consent.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Health
- Movement
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Persons on the move
- Year
- 2015
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
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Children deprived of their liberty from the perspective of the prohibition of torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment 2015, para. 62
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- According to the European Court of Human Rights, even short term detention of migrant children is a violation of the prohibition on torture and other ill-treatment, holding a child's vulnerability and best interests outweigh the Government's interest in halting illegal immigration. The Inter-American Court of Human Rights further noted that, when assessing the possibility to return, expel, deport, repatriate, reject at the border, or not to admit or in any way transfer or remove a child to a State, the best interests of the child must be determined, which also incorporate the component of adequate development and survival of the child.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Movement
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Persons on the move
- Year
- 2015
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
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