Introduction
The absolute and universal prohibition
of torture, a cornerstone of international
human rights protection, is clearly established in several human rights treaties. The
most detailed of these treaties, the United
Nations Convention against Torture, has
been ratified by more than 150 countries
in the world, and it thus provides a nearly
global framework for ending torture and
ill-treatment and ensuring access to rehabilitation services for survivors. Within the
UN human rights system, there are several
mechanisms mandated to monitor and/or
promote the implementation of the prohibition against torture at the national level.
For torture rehabilitation organisations,
it may be relevant to engage with these
mechanisms as part of their efforts to end
torture at home and ensure that victims
receive adequate redress, including rehabilitation.
Engagement with UN and other international and regional human rights mechanisms
can be a powerful tool for promoting domestic change, if it is done strategically
– on the right issue, at the right time and
in the right way. However, it is important to
carefully consider if and how to engage in
order to ensure that an organisation’s limited resources are spent on generating as
much domestic change as possible.
This short guide seeks to provide members
of the International Rehabilitation Council
for Torture Victims (IRCT) and other interested stakeholders with a practical tool to
assess whether it may be relevant for them
to engage with UN human rights mechanisms as part of their work. It does so from
the perspective that such engagement
must result in improvements in the enjoyment of rights for people on the ground,
with a reasonable investment of human
and financial resources. This guide briefly
outlines the different types of mechanisms
that are available in the UN system and
how they may be relevant to torture rehabilitation organisations. This is followed by
a set of general considerations for national
organisations to assess if and how to best
utilise these mechanisms in their work.
Finally, it outlines the different types of
support for engaging with UN mechanisms
that the IRCT can offer to our members.
Engaging with UN Human Rights Mechanisms: An Introduction
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