Torture: The Need for a Dialogue with Its Victims and Its Perpetrators
| DOI | 10.1177/002234338702400311 |
| Date | 01 September 1987 |
| Author | Laurent Nicole |
| Published date | 01 September 1987 |
| Subject Matter | Articles |
Torture:
The
Need
for
a
Dialogue
with
Its
Victims
and
Its
Perpetrators*
LAURENT
NICOLE
Principles
and
Law
Department,
International
Committee
of
the
Red
Cross
Torture
has
probably
never
been
as
widely
discussed
as
today,
nor
has
it
ever
been
as
broadly
condemned,
both
in
specific
terms
and
within
the
more
general
framework
of
human
rights
It
is
none
the
less
true
that
it
remains
a
common
practice
across
the
world
and
constitutes,
in
many
cases,
an
instrument
of
power.
The
scope
of
the
phenomenon,
as
well
as
the
development
of
its
various
forms,
renders
the
task
of
its
active
opponents
ever
more
difficult
and
sensitive
Among
their
ranks,
the
International
Committee
of
the
Red
Cross
is
developing,
within
the
framework
of
its
protection
activities
implying
access
to
persons
deprived
of
liberty,
a
little-known
approach
combining
visits
to
the
detainees
and
dialogue
with
the
responsible
authorities.
This
approach,
increasingly
implemented
by
the
ICRC
and
which
has
involved
about
90
countries,
contributes
not
only
to
preventing
and
decreasing
the
practice
of
torture,
but
also
to
furthering,
through
the
accumulation
of
experience,
global
efforts
to
assess
the
nature
and
implications
of
the
phenomenon.
ISSN
0022-3433
Journal
of
Peace
Research,
vol.
24,
no.
3,
1987
1.
Introduction
There
is
today,
even
in
the
world’s
remotest
areas,
a
growing
effort
to
increase
public
awareness
of
torture.
People
are
becoming
increasingly
conscious of
their
own
rights
in
the
face
of
this
practice.
Many
organizations,
such
as
the
United
Nations
Human
Rights
Commission
and
Amnesty
International,
record
and
draw
public
attention
to
the
testimonies
of
torture
which
they
receive.
They also
frequently
approach,
each
according
to
its
own
pro-
cedures,
the
Governments
in
question
with
the
cases
submitted
to
them.
The
media
also
contribute
substantially
towards
broadening
awareness
of
the
cir-
cumstances
under
which
torture
may
arise.
They
are,
however,
rarely
able
to
broach
with
proper
perspective,
detachment
or
free-
dom
local
events
directly
affecting
the
popu-
lation
where
these
events
occur.
Yet
few
societies
have
escaped
the
problem.
Amnesty
International
reports
that,
since
1980
alone,
the
practice
of
torture
has
been
recorded
in
over
half
of
the
170
countries
of
the
world
(see
A.I.
Index
ACT
*
The
views
expressed
in
this
article
are
personal
and
do
not
necessarily
reflect
the
views
of
the
International
Committee
of
the
Red
Cross.
03/09/85).
No
one
appears
to
be
truly
shel-
tered
from
this
type
of
repression,
which
bears
not
only
upon
its
direct
victims,
but
also,
through
the
fear
engendered
by
con-
stant
threat,
upon
their
close
relatives
and
friends,
and
gradually,
by
acting
as
a
factor
of
alienation
and
disintegration,
upon
the
society
as
a
whole.
For
individuals,
wilful
blindness
and
silence
are
the
only
escape.
This
situation
partially
explains
the
fact
that
some
two
thousand
movements
throughout
the
world
are
currently
active
in
the
struggle
for
human
rights.
The
scourge
of
torture
is
unquestionably
gaining
ground,
even
in
countries
where
the
ethical
and
moral
principles
which
prohibit
its
practice
are
enshrined
in
national
legis-
lation.
Certain
States
with
a
history
of
such
practices
frequently
proclaim
their
readiness
to
implement
the
measures
necessary
for
preventing
any
relapse.
However,
when
faced
with
problems
which
they
identify
as
threatening
to
national
security,
they
often
show
a
lack
of
discern-
ment
in
their
choice
of
measures
to
safeguard
their
interests.
Given
this
situation,
there
should
be
no
doubt
as
to
the
need
to
pursue
the
struggle
against
torture
with
increasing
determi-
nation,
by
mobilizing
a
maximum
number
of
people
in
an
effort
not
only
to
change
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