Omega Research Foundation
American Court of Human Rights (IACtHR), this includes education and training ‘on principles and
provisions of human rights protection and regarding the limits to which the use of weapons by law
enforcement officials is subject, even in a state of emergency’.11 In addition, law enforcement officials
and their superiors must be held accountable for the unlawful use of force, including under criminal
law.12
To summarise, IHRL stipulates that any use of force must be legal, necessary, proportionate and
accountable.13 Improved training of law enforcement officers on using force in line with international
human rights standards, as well as robust accountability mechanisms, should be introduced to help
end impunity for abuses carried out. This could increase the general public’s trust in law enforcement
institutions.
Protection of Persons Deprived of Liberty
While the BPUFF provide general guidelines on the use of force, as well as on the policing of
‘unlawful assemblies’ and persons in custody or detention, instruments focusing solely on one
specific environment have also been developed. The Principles and Best Practices on the Protection
of Persons Deprived of Liberty in the Americas was adopted by the Inter-American Commission on
Human Rights (IACHR) in 2008 and the criteria for the use of force and weapons in places of
detention are based on human rights principles. This is an example of human rights protections
established in a regional instrument going beyond the universal equivalent, i.e. the Nelson Mandela
Rules.
Principle XXIII states:
[…]
2. Criteria for the use of force and weapons
The personnel of places of deprivation of liberty shall not use force and other coercive
means, save exceptionally and proportionally, in serious, urgent and necessary cases as
a last resort after having previously exhausted all other options, and for the time and to
the extent strictly necessary in order to ensure security, internal order, the protection of
the fundamental rights of persons deprived of liberty, the personnel, or the visitors.
The personnel shall be forbidden to use firearms or other lethal weapons inside places of
deprivation of liberty, except when strictly unavoidable in order to protect the lives of
persons.
In all circumstances, the use of force and of firearms, or any other means used to
counteract violence or emergencies, shall be subject to the supervision of the competent
authority.
The BPUFF require states to adopt and implement rules and regulations on the use of force and
firearms by law enforcement officials.14 Although the existence of such rules is no guarantee against
abusive conduct by law enforcement officials, they are important for a number of reasons:
11
Inter-American Court of Human Rights, Caracazo v Venezuela (Series C No. 95), 2002, para. 127.
UN BPUFF, note 4, Principles 7 & 24.
13
See Annual Report of Christof Heyns, Special Rapporteur on extrajudicial executions, 2014, UN Doc.
A/HRC/26/36; Amnesty International, Use of Force Report, note 6.
14
UN BPUFF, note 4, Principle 1.
12
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