PART 2: Procedures of the Human Rights Commitee and the Committee against Torture 2.3.4 The UN Special Rapporteur on Torture The position of Special Rapporteur on torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment (“Special Rapporteur on Torture”) was created by the United Nations Commission on Human Rights in 1985 in order to examine issues relating to torture and other ill-treatment. Each Rapporteur serves in his or her individual capacity, independent of government or other organisations. To date, there have been four Special Rapporteurs on Torture. The choice of Rapporteur is “crucial to the credibility of the mandate”,462 so the position of Special Rapporteur requires “individuals of high standing and deep knowledge of human rights”.463 The current Special Rapporteur is Juan Méndez, who was appointed by the UN Human Rights Council on 1 November 2010. The original mandate of the Special Rapporteur was described in Commission Resolution 1985/33, and has evolved in succeeding resolutions. The ultimate parameters of the work of the Special Rapporteur are outlined in the International Bill of Human Rights and other UN instruments which prohibit acts of torture or cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment.464 The types of issues which the Special Rapporteur has addressed include anti-terrorism measures, the Convention against Torture, corporal punishment, disappearances, effective investigation of torture, gender-specific forms of torture, torture equipment, impunity, incommunicado detention, the role of medical personnel, non-refoulement, diplomatic assurances, anti-terrorism measures, the exclusionary rule, the impact of torture on victims, and reparation.465 The mandate of the Special Rapporteur allows him or her to uniquely respond in situations where other human rights bodies working against torture may not be able. For example, there is no requirement that the State in question be a party to CAT or any other treaty, so the Special Rapporteur may respond to allegations of torture against any State. In addition, unlike the individual complaints mechanisms, the Special Rapporteur does not require the exhaustion of domestic remedies to intervene. 462 UN Fact Sheet No. 27, “Seventeen Frequently Asked Questions about United Nations Special Rapporteurs”, p. 6, available at: http://www.ohchr.org/EN/PublicationsResources/Pages/ FactSheets.aspx. 463 UN Fact Sheet No. 27, “Seventeen Frequently Asked Questions about United Nations Special Rapporteurs”, p. 6, available at: http://www.ohchr.org/EN/PublicationsResources/Pages/ FactSheets.aspx. 464 Methods of Work of the Special Rapporteur on Torture, Annex to UN Doc. E/CN.4/1997/7 (hereinafter referred to as Methods of Work), para. 1. These Methods of Work were approved by the Commission on Human Rights in Resolution 2001/62, (2001) UN Doc. E/CN.4/RES/2001, para. 30. 465 A list of “Issues in Focus” and related reports, available at: http://www.ohchr.org/EN/Issues/Torture/ SRTorture/Pages/Issues.aspx. 143