URU, Alm.del - 2008-09 - Bilag 150: FN's Menneskerettighedsråd, resolution mod tortur den 27. marts 2009

AGeneral AssemblyDistr.LIMITEDA/HRC/10/L.3220 March 2009Original: ENGLISHHUMAN RIGHTS COUNCILTenth sessionAgenda item 3PROMOTION AND PROTECTION OF ALL HUMAN RIGHTS, CIVIL,POLITICAL, ECONOMIC, SOCIAL AND CULTURAL RIGHTS,INCLUDING THE RIGHT TO DEVELOPMENTArgentina, Australia*, Austria*, Belgium*, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria*,Cameroon, Canada, Chile, Costa Rica*, Croatia*, Cyprus*, Czech Republic*,Denmark*, Estonia*, Finland*, France, Germany, Greece*, Guatemala*, Hungary*,Iceland*, Ireland*, Italy, Latvia*, Liechtenstein*, Lithuania*, Luxembourg*,Malta*, Mexico, Monaco*, Netherlands, New Zealand*, Norway*, Panama*,Peru*, Poland*, Portugal*, Republic of Moldova*, Romania*, Slovakia,Slovenia, Spain*, Sweden*, Switzerland, the former Yugoslav Republic ofMacedonia*, Turkey*, Ukraine, United Kingdom of Great Britain andNorthern Ireland, Uruguay: draft resolution10/... Torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment:the role and responsibility of medical and other health personnelThe Human Rights Council,Recallingall resolutions on torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment orpunishment and on forensic science adopted by the General Assembly, the Commission onHuman Rights and the Human Rights Council,* Non-member State of the Human Rights Council.Recalling alsothe Principles of Medical Ethics relevant to the Role of Health Personnel,particularly Physicians, in the Protection of Prisoners and Detainees against Torture and OtherCruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment,Reaffirmingthat no one shall be subjected to torture or to other cruel, inhuman ordegrading treatment or punishment,

Recallingthat freedom from torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment orpunishment is a non-derogable right that must be protected under all circumstances, including intimes of international or internal conflict or disturbance and state of emergency, and thatthe absolute prohibition of torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment orpunishment is affirmed in relevant international instruments,Notingthe duty of medical and other health personnel to practice for the good of thepatients and never do harm or injustice pursuant to the Hippocratic Oath and their respectiveprofessional codes of ethics,Recallingthat it is a gross contravention of medical ethics, for medical and other healthpersonnel to engage, actively or passively, in acts which constitute participation in, complicityin, incitement to or attempts to commit torture or other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment orpunishment pursuant to the Principles of Medical Ethics,Stressingthat medical and other health personnel have a duty to provide competentmedical service in full professional and moral independence, with compassion and respect forhuman dignity, and to always bear in mind human life and to act in the patient’s best interestunder their respective professional codes of ethics,Notingthe duty of all medical and other health personnel to report or denounce acts oftorture or cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment of which they are aware to relevant medical,judicial, national or international authorities as appropriate under and consistent with theirrespective professional codes of ethics,Noting alsothat, under the Geneva Conventions of 1949, torture and inhuman treatmentare a grave breach and that under the statute of the International Tribunal for the Prosecution ofPersons Responsible for Serious Violations of International Humanitarian Law Committed in theTerritory of the Former Yugoslavia since 1991, the statute of the International Criminal Tribunalfor the Prosecution of Persons Responsible for Genocide and Other Serious Violations ofInternational Humanitarian Law Committed in the Territory of Rwanda and Rwandan CitizensResponsible for Genocide and Other Such Violations Committed in the Territory ofNeighbouring States between 1 January and 31 December 1994 and the Rome Statute of theInternational Criminal Court, acts of torture can constitute crimes against humanity and, whencommitted in a situation of armed conflict, constitute war crimes,1.Condemnsall forms of torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment orpunishment, including through intimidation, which are and shall remain prohibited at any timeand in any place whatsoever and can thus never be justified, and calls upon all States toimplement fully the absolute prohibition of torture and other cruel, inhuman or degradingtreatment or punishment;2.Emphasizesthat States must take persistent, determined and effective measures toprevent and combat torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment, andstresses that all acts of torture must be made offences under domestic criminal law;3.Stressesthat an order or instruction from a superior officer or a public authorityshould not be invoked as a justification of torture or other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment

or punishment and that States must never request or require anyone, including any medical orother health personnel, to commit any act of torture or other cruel, inhuman or degradingtreatment or punishment;4.UrgesStates to respect the professional and moral independence, duties andresponsibilities of medical and other health personnel;5.Also urgesStates to ensure that all medical and other health personnel may fulfiltheir duty to report or denounce acts of torture or cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment of whichthey are aware to relevant medical, judicial, national or international authorities as appropriateunder and consistent with their respective codes of ethics without fear of retribution orharassment;6.Stressesthat all allegations of torture and other cruel, inhuman or degradingtreatment or punishment must be examined promptly and impartially by the competent domesticauthority, including where relevant through examination by forensic experts and other relevantmedical personnel, in order for those who encourage, order, tolerate or perpetrate such acts to beheld responsible, brought to justice and punished commensurate with the severity of the offence;7.UrgesStates to establish effective investigation and documentation procedures, andtakes note of the Principles on the Effective Investigation and Documentation of Torture andOther Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment as a useful tool in this respect;8.Stressesthat States must not punish or otherwise intimidate medical and other healthpersonnel for not obeying orders or instructions to commit, facilitate or conceal acts amountingto torture or other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment or for speaking outagainst it;9.Urgesall States to provide all persons deprived of their liberty, in prisons or anyother detention facility, with a professional medical examination at their admission to andtransfer between such facilities and thereafter on a regular basis as a means to help preventtorture or other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment;10.Also urgesall States to provide all persons deprived of their liberty with protection oftheir physical and mental health, treatment of any disease or care specifically needed by personswith disabilities of the same quality and standard as is afforded to persons not deprived of theirliberty as a means to help prevent torture or other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment orpunishment;11.Recognizesthat forensic investigation can play an important role in combatingimpunity by providing the evidentiary basis on which prosecutions can successfully be broughtagainst persons responsible for violations of human rights and, where applicable,international humanitarian law and encourages further coordination concerning, inter alia, theplanning and realization of such investigations, as well as the protection of forensic and relatedexperts, between Governments, intergovernmental organizations and non-governmentalorganizations;12.Calls uponall States to ensure that education and information regarding the absolute

prohibition of torture and cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment are fullyincluded in the training of medical and other health personnel who may be involved in thecustody, interrogation and treatment of any individual subjected to any form of arrest, detentionor imprisonment;13.Urgesall States that have not yet done so to become parties to the Conventionagainst Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment as a matter ofpriority and calls upon States parties to give early consideration to signing and ratifying theOptional Protocol to the Convention;14.Welcomesthe designation or establishment of independent national preventivemechanisms to prevent torture, with the participation of relevant medical and other healthpersonnel, encourages all States that have not yet done so to establish such mechanisms and callsupon States parties to the Optional Protocol to the Convention against Torture and other Cruel,Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment to fulfil their obligation to designate orestablish truly independent and effective national preventive mechanisms;15.Requeststhe Special Rapporteur on torture and other relevant special procedures andinvites relevant treaty bodies, within their respective mandates:(a) To remain vigilant with regard to medical and other health personnel’s active orpassive participation in torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishmentand to their functional independence of the institution in which they serve;(b) To discuss possible areas of cooperation with the relevant United Nations bodies,specialized agencies and programmes, in particular the World Health Organization, to addressthe role and responsibility of medical and other health personnel in the documentation andprevention of torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment;(c) To respond effectively to credible and reliable information submitted to theirattention regarding alleged cases of the active or passive participation of medical and otherhealth personnel in torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment;(d) To consider including in their reports submitted to the Council information on theproblem of medical and other health personnel’s participation in torture and other cruel, inhumanor degrading treatment or punishment;16.Also requestsStates to cooperate fully and in good faith with the relevant specialprocedures;17.Calls uponthe Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rightsto continue to provide advisory services to States for the prevention of torture and cruel,inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment, including concerning tools for the investigation ofalleged cases of torture;18.Takes noteof the report of the Special Rapporteur (A/HRC/10/44).-----