ANNEX – International and regional human rights systems
51
dural remedies and substantive remedies/
reparations.
important where torture allegations concern
certain identifiable categories of persons,
namely children, women and racial groups.
2. INTERNATIONAL COMPLAINTS PROCEDURES
The working methods of each of these bodies are very similar. All have the power to
examine and comment on state reports, and
most are also able to receive individual complaints, or else are in the process of developing such a procedure.
Depending on the whether a country has
specifically agreed to their jurisdiction, torture victims may file a complaint before the
following international (universal) human
rights mechanisms:
The United Nations Treaty Bodies
• Committee Against Torture (CAT):
supervises the UN Convention
Against Torture
• Human Rights Committee (HRC):
supervises the International
Covenant on Civil and Political
Rights
• Committee on the Elimination of
Discrimination Against Women
(CEDAW): supervises the UN
Convention on the Elimination of
Discrimination Against Women
• Committee on the Elimination of
Racial Discrimination (CERD):
supervises the UN Convention
on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination
The Committee on the Rights of the Child
(CRC) supervises the UN Convention on
the Rights of the Child. It can review State
reports and discussions are currently ongoing regarding the possibility of adopting a
protocol to the CRC which would allow individual complaints.
The most relevant for the purpose of torturerelated material are the CAT, which focuses
solely on the subject of torture, and the HRC,
which is a well-established body dealing
with a range of human rights including torture. However, the other committees are very
Similarly, depending on the whether a country has specifically agreed to their jurisdiction, torture victims may file a complaint
before the following international (regional)
human rights mechanisms:
The Regional Human Rights Mechanisms
• African Commission and Court
on Human and Peoples’ Rights
• European Court of Human Rights
• Inter-American Commission and
Court of Human Rights
(For further detail on how the UN HRC and CAT as
well as the three regional mechanisms work see Annex in this guide.)
3. USE OF INTERNATIONAL
COMPLAINTS PROCEDURES
AND REPORTING MECHANISMS
AND ENFORCEMENT
Decisions by regional or international human rights bodies that uphold a complaint
can both provide justice and reparation
to the victim(s) and bring about systemic
changes where the State concerned acts on
the decision. However, even where a victim
and those acting on his or her behalf secure
a favourable decision, the respondent State
may be reluctant to comply.207 The enforce-
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