DAY 3 – VALENTINA CALEDO AND TOMÁS PASCUAL Valentina Caledo* and Tomás Pascual* “Implementing the exclusionary rule in practice: the potential of civil society organisations” *Valentina Cadelo, Senior Adviser, Law and Advocacy at the Association for the Prevention of Torture *Tomás Pascual, Fellow in Criminal and Judicial Systems at the Association for the Prevention of Torture Introduction The inadmissibility of evidence obtained by torture (also known as the “exclusionary rule”, and found in Article 15 of the UNCAT) is a crucial aspect of States’ obligations to prevent torture. It removes one of the main incentives for law enforcement officials to use torture or ill-treatment – to elicit confession. Further, in the words of the UN General Assembly, the “adequate corroboration of statements, including confessions, used as evidence in any proceedings constitutes one safeguard for the prevention of torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment” (GA Res 67/161 of 20 December 2012, para 16). The main responsibility to ensure implementation of the exclusionary rule lies with the different state institutions, as the State is the primary bearer of the duty to prevent torture. However, many other actors, such as civil society organisations (CSOs), play a critical role in the effective implementation of this rule and, accordingly, further contribute to prevent torture in practice. Against this background, this blog post provides a few reflections on how CSOs involved in the area of torture prevention may actively contribute to ensure the prohibition of evidence tainted by torture is better applied in law and practice. Drawing on the experience acquired by the Association for the Prevention of Torture (APT), this contribution highlights the critical role that CSOs play while: Intervening as a third party in the courts’ review of domestic regimes to ensure compliance with existing standards on the prohibition of evidence tainted by torture and its effective implementation in law and practice; and Supporting and promoting the development of new, comprehensive and systemic frameworks that concretely assist the effective application of the exclusionary rule in domestic law and practice. I. Third-party interventions before courts: a unique opportunity for CSOs to promote State compliance with international standards on the exclusionary rule Third-party interventions constitute an important way for CSOs to engage actively in a dialogue with courts as well as to contribute to the review of domestic regimes that fall short of international standards. Typically, they provide CSOs with the opportunity to submit additional information and/or expand on specific legal issues that are of wide public importance and could have a big impact on the interpretation or protection of human rights law in a country. Over the past years, the APT actively engaged with courts both at the regional and national level to promote State compliance with international standards on the exclusionary rule. Recent examples include the APT amicus curiae brief presented before the Inter-American Court of Human 31