According to these Principles and Guidelines reparation includes the following forms: Restitution: The victim should be, whenever possible, restored to the original situation before the gross violations of international human rights law. This includes for example restoration of liberty or the return of property. Compensation: Monetary compensation can be provided for moral damages, material damages or for mental or physical harm caused by the violation of human rights law. Rehabilitation: This may include for example medical and psychological care as well as legal and social services. Satisfaction: Means of satisfaction can encompass the prosecution of perpetrators, a public apology or an official declaration or judgement restoring the dignity of a person. Guarantees of non-repetition: This may include for example measures to strengthen the independence of the judiciary. , Resolution Basic Principles and Guidelines on the Right to a Remedy and Reparation for Victims of Gross Violations of International Human Rights Law and Serious Violations of International Humanitarian Law: resolution/adopted by the General Assembly, , Although States are obliged to implement a legal system which ensures reparation, a survey in 30 countries on the law and practices concerning reparation for victims of torture showed that laws are inadequate and/or lacking in most countries, and even when relevant laws exist, these are rarely implemented. The impunity of perpetrators of torture is one of the major reasons for this weak implementation of laws concerning reparation for victims. Torture remains unacknowledged, victims suffer in silence and there is little or no official support forsurvivors of torture. A further reason identified is the lack of systematic monitoring mechanisms for the documentation of torture. Additionally, the absence of a specific offence of torture in domestic law impedes systematic documentation. A monitoring mechanism would show the prevalence of torture and could form a basis for seeking reparation for victims of torture.169 The situation concerning reparation for victims of torture can be compared with the situation of trafficked persons. According to the Palermo Protocol, States “shall ensure that its domestic legal system contains measures that offer victims of trafficking in persons the possibility of obtaining compensation for damage suffered”. 170 This provision does not oblige States to provide trafficked persons with remedies; a legal possibility of compensation has to be offered. States have several options to implement this obligation: provisions which allow victims to sue offenders for civil damages, provisions which allow criminal courts to award criminal damages, or the State can establish a specific fund for victims paid by the State.171 The CoE Convention stresses the importance of compensation and calls upon the States to adopt legislative or other measures as may be necessary “to guarantee compensation for victims”. 172 Alongside the obligation to implement measures in order to guarantee compensation, the CoE Convention also states further necessary measures which support the right to compensation. The CoE Convention requires that access to information, including information on compensation, be ensured. Additionally, the right to legal assistance and to free legal aid for victims should be established.173 At the level of the European Union, the Council Framework Decision on the standing of victims in criminal proceedings174 requires EU Member States to ensure access to compensation for victims of criminal acts within criminal proceedings. DIR 2011/36/EU further specifies this obligation for trafficked persons and requires Member States to ensure the access for trafficked persons to existing schemes of compensation which are in place for all victims of crimes.175 The UN Principles and Guidelines on Human Rights and Human Trafficking require States to “ensure that trafficked persons are given access to effective and appropriate legal remedies”. 176 As shown above victims of violations of international human rights law are entitled to various forms of United Nations Protocol to Prevent, Suppress and Punish Trafficking in Persons, Especially Women and Children, Supplementing the United Nations Convention against Transnational Organized Crime The International Law of Human Trafficking Convention on Action against Trafficking in Human Beings Council Framework Decision 2001/220/JHA on the Standing of Victims in Criminal Proceedings resolution/adopted by the General Assembly Directive 2011/36/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 5 April 2011 on preventing and combating trafficking in human beings and protecting its victims, and replacing Council Framework Decision 2002/629/JHA Reparation for Torture: A survey of law and practice in thirty selected countries Recommended Principles and Guidelines on Human Rights and Human Trafficking, 36

Select target paragraph3

Connect to a paragraph
Connect to an entity
Disable highlights
Add to table of contents