Preamble 19 3.  Issues of Interpretation The first paragraph is modelled on the first preambular paragraph of both Covenants. The phrase ‘recognition of the inherent dignity’ was, however, deleted during the Working Group discussions because these words were also contained in the second paragraph. The term ‘principles proclaimed in the Charter of the United Nations’ refers both to the principles enshrined in Article 2 and to the purposes of the United Nations laid down in Article 1 of the Charter,20 ie peace and security, development and human rights. The interdependence of these three main objectives of the world organization was emphasized by former Secretary General Kofi Annan in his well-​known report ‘In Larger Freedom’ of 21 March 2005 as follows: ‘Accordingly, we will not enjoy development without security, we will not enjoy security without development, and we will not enjoy either without respect for human rights’.21 The significance of human rights as a precondition for both security and development was already envisaged in the preambles of both Covenants and the CAT which state that recognition of human rights ‘is the foundation of freedom, justice and peace in the world’. The second paragraph is identical with the second preambular paragraph of both Covenants and expresses, like the first paragraph, that human rights have their origin in natural law. The reference to the ‘inherent dignity of the human person’ is of particular relevance for the prohibition and prevention of torture as any act of torture, like slavery, constitutes a direct and deliberate attack on the dignity of the human person. Torture presupposes a situation in which one person exercises total control over another person. The victim of torture finds itself in a situation of powerlessness, and the perpetrator aims at depriving the victim of its dignity and humanity.22 The third paragraph is taken from the fourth preambular paragraph of both Covenants. During the drafting in the Working Group, a particular reference to Article 55 of the UN Charter was added. According to Article 55(c), the United Nations shall promote ‘universal respect for, and observance of, human rights and fundamental freedoms for all without distinction as to race, sex, language, or religion’. It is this emphasis on the principle of non-​discrimination which the drafters had in mind when proposing an explicit reference to Article 55.23 This principle is also stressed in Article 1 CAT: in addition to extraction of a confession or information, punishment and intimidation, discrimination is explicitly listed as one of the purposes of torture.24 The fourth paragraph refers to the absolute prohibition of torture and CIDT, as contained in already existing instruments, such as Article 5 UDHR and Article 7 CCPR. Apart from its preamble, the Convention against Torture does not contain any provision explicitly prohibiting torture or CIDT or providing for a human right not to be subjected to torture or CIDT. The Convention only contains additional obligations of States parties to criminalize torture under domestic law, to provide victims of torture with a right to remedy and reparation, and to prevent torture and CIDT. The fifth paragraph refers to the 1975 Declaration which forms the direct basis for the Convention against Torture. In the United Nations, binding human rights treaties 20   cf Manfred Nowak, UN Covenant on Civil and Political Rights: CCPR Commentary (2nd edn, NP Engel 2005) 2. 21   A/​59/​2005, para  17. 22   On the significance of the situation of powerlessness for the definition of torture see below Art 1. 23 24   See above 2.2.   See below Art 1, 3.1.4