A/59/324 violations of human rights and fundamental freedoms, in which he noted: “the application of statutory limitations often deprives victims of gross violations of human rights of the reparations that are due to them. The principle should prevail that claims relating to reparations for gross violations of human rights shall not be subject to a statute of limitations. In this connection, it should be taken into account that the effects of gross violations of human rights are linked to the most serious crimes to which, according to authoritative legal opinion, statutory limitations shall not apply. Moreover, it is well established that for many victims of gross violations of human rights, the passage of time has no attenuating effect; on the contrary, there is an increase in post-traumatic stress, requiring all necessary material, medical, psychological and social assistance and support over a long period of time” (E/CN.4/Sub.2/1993/8, para. 135). 59. The Special Rapporteur wishes to associate himself with the views of the United Nations Voluntary Fund for Victims of Torture: “the first projects financed by the fund especially addressed the immediate needs of torture victims, essentially by providing them with medical and psychological assistance. A trend that aims to offer them holistic assistance has subsequently emerged. In fact, many projects are taking a multidisciplinary approach, combining… [psychological, medical, social, legal and financial assistance]. These types of assistance are interdependent and mutually reinforcing, when they are jointly offered, in terms of their impact on the victims’ lives, responding to the multifaceted nature of the effects of torture on the individual. For example, obtaining reparation for violations undergone has a very important psychological effect for the victims. Conversely, testifying to obtain reparation can have a significant destabilizing effect, with the possibility of an emotional collapse requiring sustained psychological attention. Moreover, social assistance, together with specific kinds of specialized therapies, such as occupational therapy, has both a psychological and economic impact on victims by enabling them to rebuild their self-confidence while developing new skills and meeting their relatives’ material needs. Financial assistance, for its part, is sometimes connected with medical assistance when it is used to purchase medicines for the treatment of victims” (A/58/284, para. 35). 60. The Special Rapporteur would like to take this opportunity to reiterate his call upon all States and all sectors of national and international society to support to the maximum extent possible the United Nations Voluntary Fund for Victims of Torture. He also calls for support and assistance to rehabilitation centres to ensure that victims of torture are provided the means for as full a rehabilitation as possible. He has recently received troubling allegations according to which the authorities have threatened to close rehabilitation centres for victims of torture. In this connection, he would like to refer to resolution 2004/41 of the Commission on Human Rights, in which the Commission stressed “that national legal systems should ensure that victims of torture or other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment obtain redress and are awarded fair and adequate compensation and receive appropriate socio-medical rehabilitation, and in this regard encourages the development of rehabilitation centres for victims of torture”. 17