UN rights experts says clear connection exists between torture and corruption

A UN human rights expert urged UN member states to make a greater effort to tackle domestic corruption, stating that a clear link exists between torture and corrupt practices. The chair of the UN Subcommittee on the Prevention of Torture (SPT) presented the SPT's annual report to the General Assembly's Third Committee. According to the report, torture and ill-treatment are less likely to be discovered or prosecuted in states with higher levels of corruption, making it more difficult for the SPT to prevent it. Evans went on to stress that the protocol that the states need to follow in addressing torture is not a set of abstract legal obligations, but rather an established set of practical tools. The SPT was established pursuant to the provisions of the Optional Protocol to the Convention against Torture, which was adopted by the General Assembly in 2002. Its role is to prevent and eliminate torture and cruel treatment and punishment of detainees.

Read the article by Taylor Gillan in Jurist.