Torture prevention in the criminal justice system: The roles and responsibilities of police and other law enforcement
When
Where
Organized by
This half-day conference provides an opportunity for OSCE participating States and civil society to examine how criminal justice systems that are overly reliant on the use of confessions as evidence may incentivize the use of torture and other ill-treatment, especially by police and other law enforcement officials. It will also provide a platform to elaborate on promising practices with regards to reducing incentives for police and other law enforcement officials to use torture and other ill-treatment, in particular during the police custody and pre-trial investigation phase.
The webinar is part of the Anti-Torture portfolio’s ongoing work to assist participating States in the fight against torture.
Why it is important
In their OSCE Human Dimension Commitments, participating States have explicitly and unequivocally pledged to uphold the absolute prohibition of torture and other ill-treatment, and have committed themselves to strive for its elimination. However, the use of torture and other ill-treatment continues to be a problem in criminal justice systems across the OSCE region.
Police and other law enforcement officials play a vital role in the protection of the right to life, liberty and security of a person. They also have an important role in serving the community and protecting all persons against acts of torture and other ill-treatment.
There are, however, certain aspects of criminal justice systems that may incentivize law enforcement to use torture or other ill-treatment in order to obtain confessions as evidence leading to convictions. In this regard, the recent publication by the ODIHR and Fair Trials, Eliminating Incentives for Torture in the OSCE Region, brings new insight on the factors that may incentivize and facilitate the use of torture by police and other law enforcement officials.