UNCAT Ratification Tool
The prohibition includes not just the obligation of States not to torture (article 1), but also the
corollary obligations not to send persons to places where they may be tortured (article 3), and
the obligation not to benefit from the fruits of torture (article 15).
States should ensure the absolute prohibition against torture and other ill‐treatment is
adequately reflected in their domestic legal order, and included in the training materials of all
relevant State actors (article 10).
Prevention: States must take effective legislative, administrative, judicial or other measures to
prevent acts of torture (articles 2 and 11) and other ill‐treatment (article 16).
The UNCAT does not list the measures that must be��taken by States, only requiring that the
measures be effective in practice.2 Various measures may therefore be undertaken by States.
Institutionalising safeguards against torture, such as providing early access to a lawyer and
independent inspection of detention facilities, are recommended by the Special Rapporteur on
torture among other experts as particularly effective measures to prevent torture and other forms
of ill‐treatment.3
Punishment: All acts of torture must be investigated and prosecuted. States should ensure a
specific offence of torture included in domestic law (article 4) and that all complaints are
investigated (articles 5‐9 and 12‐13). Where there are reasonable grounds to believe torture has
taken place, the alleged perpetrator should be prosecuted.
Redress: Victims of torture should be able to obtain redress and have an enforceable right to fair
and adequate compensation, including the means for as full rehabilitation as possible
(article 14).4
States should adopt legislation to provide victims with effective remedy and the right to obtain
adequate and appropriate redress. Such remedies must be available against the State and not
just as a civil complaint against the perpetrator, and be effective in practice.
Reporting: All States parties should provide the Committee against Torture with periodic reports
describing the steps it has taken to implement the Convention.
Pursuant to article 19 of the Convention, States parties must provide an initial report to the
Committee against Torture within one year of ratification. See ‘Initial Reports to the Committee
against Torture, General Guidelines’ for more information. Periodic reports are due every four
years after the initial review.
2
The Committee against Torture has published a comment to help States parties understand how to understand the
obligation and effectively prevent torture. See CAT, General Comment N°2, CAT/C/GC/2, 24 January 2008.
3
See General Recommendations of the Special Rapporteur on torture, E/CN.4/2003/68, §26.
4
Please refer to CAT, General Comment N°3, CAT/C/GC/3, 16 November 2012, in which the Committee examines the
obligation to provide redress in detail.
3