ABSTRACT
Although torture was employed in common law countries in the 17th century, it gradually came to be accepted that state authorities should collect evidence themselves and that, in the detention and interviewing of suspects, certain minimum basic standards should be observed; as the rationalist tradition in the law of evidence emerged so torture died out.126 However, the practice continued to be employed in political dictatorships to silence opponents and was resorted to by a number of regimes in the 1930s.127 Thus, Art 5 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (1948) reads: ‘No one shall be subject to torture or to cruel or degrading treatment or punishment.’ This basic prohibition is restated in Art 7 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (1966).128 In many states, the absorption of the principles of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (1948) into the written constitution has served to act as a firm deterrent to such conduct. However, since 1945 there has been considerable evidence that in some states the practice of torture has been used normally with the object of controlling political opponents. There is considerable evidence assembled by NGOs that the practice of torture is still widely used to crush domestic political opposition.129 To restrict this development a number of international and regional treaties have been adopted. The most important international document130 was the Declaration on the Protection of All Persons from Being Subjected to Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or punishment which was adopted by the General Assembly in 1975.131
The Convention against Torture and Other Cruel and Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment was adopted on 10 December 1984 and entered into force in 1987 after receipt of the 20th document of ratification.132 The expression ‘torture’ is defined in Article 1 as meaning:
Under Part I of the Convention state parties are obliged to ensure that torture does not take place on their territory (Art 2) and they are required to refuse to expel or extradite a person to a country where there is a risk that he may be tortured (Art 3). Further state parties are required to make torture a criminal offence133 and to take steps to exercise jurisdiction.134 In broad terms, a state is obliged to prosecute or extradite those alleged to have committed who are found within its territory.135 By the terms of Art 10, positive duties are placed on states to ensure that state officials are educated and trained to be aware of the unlawfulness of torture.136
