Torture Is Widespread

Amnesty International has launched a new campaign which shows that during the last five years, torture and other forms of ill-treatment, have occured in at least 141 countries from every region of the world.

Imagine what torture is like......

Hopefully, you’ll never find out. This video tries to give you a feel for it by putting you under the hood.

All over the world people just like you are being tortured right now; beaten, electrocuted, burnt with cigarettes or having their fingernails pulled out.

Do you feel safe?

Via globescan.com

Amnesty International commissioned a global survey of more than 21,000 people in 21 countries across every continent. This research revealed that the fear of torture exists in all these countries.

For example, in Brazil 80% of respondents said that they would not feel safe from torture if taken into custody by their authorities.

Dilorom is not safe.

Via Amnesty International

Dilorom Abdukadirova peacefully attended a protest to voice her concerns about the economy in Uzbekistan. When the police opened fire on the protests she ran for safety to the border where she received a refugee visa for Australia.

Almost 4 years later she returned to her family but on arrival she was detained and charged with attempting to overthrow the constitutional order and illegally exiting Uzbekistan.

At the trial her family members said she looked unusually thin, had bruises on her face and was without her head scarf. The family doesn’t believe she would have removed her head scarf by choice.

Dilorom remains in prison, where her family fears she is again being ill-treated.

Is Torture Necessary?

Via globescan.com

Real life does not look like “24” or “Zero Dark Thirty.”

There is no ticking time bombs or save the world type scenarios. Amnesty International's research has shown that most victims of torture and other ill-treatment worldwide are in fact poor, marginalised and disempowered criminal suspects who unfortunately don't attract the attention of the media and public opinion.

No matter what the reason, torture is abhorrent. It is barbaric and inhumane. It is wrong, self-defeating and poisons the rule of law, replacing it with terror. No one is safe when governments allow its use.

Thank fully 60 % of people around the world agreed that torture is never acceptable.

Guantánamo Bay

Via Amnesty International

The Guantánamo detention facility, which is located on the US naval base in Cuba, became a symbol of torture and other ill-treatment after it was opened four months after the 9/11 attacks.

Among the detainees still held there today include individuals who were subjected by the USA to torture and enforced disappearance prior to being transferred to Guantánamo. There has been little or no accountability for these crimes under international law committed in a program of secret detention operated under presidential authority. The US government has systematically blocked attempts by former detainees to seek redress for such violations.

27 Different Ways

Torture methods vary from country to country and region to region, but these are the most commonly used methods; from prolonged isolation to electric shocks, boiling water and sleep deprivation.

Not included in this above list is the use of rape or humiliation as torture.

Torture can cause permanent or long-term physical harm, and although many techniques may not leave physical scars, all methods can have devastating and long-term consequences.

We've been working for 50 years....

Via Amnesty International

Amnesty International has been fighting to end this cruel and inhumane treatment for over 50 years. We led the campaign for the creation of the UN Convention against Torture. The Convention was groundbreaking: it offered a set of concrete steps to make the global ban on torture a reality, by establishing a set of measures designed to prevent torture, punish perpetrators and ensure justice and redress to victims.

155 countries have signed this convention.

Despite these successes, torture is not a thing of the past. See more here: Torture: Our Legacy, Our Future

And we will continue to campaign until we ...

Via Amnesty International

Combatting torture has long been part of Amnesty International’s history – and until people no longer live in fear of torture, it will continue to be our future.

Torture happens behind closed doors. It happens when there are no lawyers or doctors present, when police and others with power to wield do not fear the consequences of their actions. But by ensuring such safeguards are in place, you can stop torture.

We need you to support our Stop Torture campaign to ensure that no one has to suffer at the hands of a torturer.

Join us to #StopTorture