Publications

REDRESS submitted a brief for the United Nations Human Rights committee's upcoming general discussion on the preparation of a General Comment on Article 6 (right to life) of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), which protects the right to life. Our submission focuses on the death penalty and its relevance to torture.  

REDRESS has released a number of training guides, which are intended as a reference on Istanbul Protocol standards for documenting torture and ill-treatment for a variety of professionals in the Maldives, including medical professionals, members of the legal profession, state officials responsible for those in detention, including police officers, relevant government ministries and members of civil society. The handbooks are based on training delivered to medical professionals, lawyers, human rights investigators and members of civil society in Malé, Maldives, in January 2015 with the Human rights Commission of the Maldives.

Lawyers for Justice in Libya (LFJL) and REDRESS have prepared a detailed legal commentary on the first set of constitutional recommendations published by Libya's Constitutional Drafting Assembly in December 2014. While we welcome the positive steps taken by the constitutional drafting body to address some of the key limitations to the country’s legal protections, these provisions are not sufficiently comprehensive given Libya’s historical use of torture, its continued prevalence today, and the degree of impunity with which it is carried out. In light of this, we make several recommendations to the propose provisions.

REDRESS, in collaboration with four human rights organisations, has addressed a letter to the EU Genocide Network ahead of its 18th Meeting, calling for a special meeting of the Network following the findings of the US Senate Intelligence Committee report summary published last year. This report concludes that the torture techniques used in the post 9/11 torture programme conducted by CIA officials and contractors in secret prisons around the world were far more brutal, systematic and widespread than previously acknowledged. The other co-signatories are Track Impunity Always (TRIAL), Human Rights Watch (HRW), the International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH) and the European Center for Constitutional and Human Rights (ECCHR).

The report analyses the current framework governing the appointment of legal representatives of victims (LRVs) as well as Common Legal Representatives of Victims (CLRV). We examine some of the key factors governing the selection of counsel for victims as well as victims’ limited opportunities to challenge such appointments. We also review the practice of legal representation. We assess whether there may be a need to better spell out lawyers’ roles and responsibilities, and review the difficulties faced by counsel when communicating and taking instructions from victims and how to overcome them. Lastly, we consider whether additional monitoring mechanisms may help, and what these might look like, and whether the current disciplinary framework is adequate to address actual or perceived under performance.

Our annual report for 2015 provides an overview of the work that REDRESS undertook in over 25 countries affecting approximately 850 individual torture survivors from 1 April 2014 to 31 March 2015. The report shows that more and more of our clients are receiving positive judgments from human rights courts and related tribunals, but it also reminds us that impunity remains a deep-seated problem in many countries where we work and that we should continue to confront this problem, until we overcome it.  

REDRESS, in collaboration with the Advocacy Forum, the Asian Human Rights Commission and the World Organization against Torture, made this submission to the UN General Assembly concerning the November 2015 Universal Periodic Review (UPR) of Nepal. Our submission addresses key areas of concern for human rights in Nepal, including continued impunity for serious human rights violations committed during the 1996-2006 internal armed conflict and since; serious flaws in the transitional justice law and transitional justice processes; Nepal’s failure to effectively respond to sexual violence; the continued practice of torture, and the ineffectiveness of the National Human Rights Commission.

This handbook for torture survivors contains useful information for victims, their families and friends, community members, and front-line service providers and advisers who work closely with survivors. In it, you can find information on how to access medical rehabilitation and care to address the physical, mental, and emotional well-being of torture survivors. It also details the steps to apply for asylum, how to regularise a torture victim’s immigration status, and where to look for advice on social welfare, employment, or education. It also includes information on torture victims’ right to justice, reparation and accountability, as well as a list of resources where survivors can seek further support.