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U.N. report on torture prevention welcomes progress in Afghanistan

Xinhua, February 25, 2015 Adjust font size:

A U.N. report released here Wednesday on the torture and ill-treatment of conflict-related detainees in government detention facilities shows some progress in Afghanistan.

Being the third of its kind released jointly by United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) and the U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights, the report and its findings are based on interviews with 790 conflict-related detainees between February 2013 and December 2014 and with Afghan security, police and judicial officials, as well as analysis of documentary, medical and other information.

"The government of Afghanistan's efforts to prevent torture and ill-treatment have shown some progress over the last two years," said the U.N. Secretary-General's Special Representative for Afghanistan and head of UNAMA, Nicholas Haysom, "More remains to be done, however, and I welcome the new administration's immediate attention to end these practices."

"In particular, UNAMA welcomes the incoming government's commitment to implement a new national plan on elimination of torture," Haysom said.

Elements of the Afghan government's proposed national plan include legislative reforms, ratification of the Optional Protocol to the Convention Against Torture, remedy for victims of torture, education and capacity building programs, discrediting torture in public culture, preventive measures, and continuous observation of implementation of the national plan.

According to the newly released report, a 14 percent decrease has been seen in the number of detainees tortured or ill-treated compared to the previous reporting period, with one-third of all detainees interviewed found to have endured ill-treatment or torture.

However, the report also shows a persistent lack of accountability with a single criminal prosecution for torture observed since 2010, and the country's National Directorate of Security and the Ministry of Interior's oversight mechanisms remain inadequate, lacking independence, authority, transparency and capacity.

The report also noted that many Afghan security and police officials interviewed appeared not to accept that torture is illegal and saw it as a proper tool to obtain valuable intelligence information.

"Torture is a very serious crime, for which there can be no justification. The international prohibition is absolute. We have seen many examples showing how its use undermines national security and proves counter-productive," said the U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights, Zeid Ra'ad Al Hussein. Endi