Important step to combat Torture with new Council of Europe Recommendation

Torture and other ill-treatment are among the most abhorrent violations of human rights, human integrity and human dignity and are prohibited by international law. Yet, despite this absolute prohibition, torture and other ill-treatment persist all over the world. For this reason, the EU believes that regulating the trade in goods used for torture and the death penalty is an important contribution towards eradicating torture and ill treatment and commends this Council of Europe Recommendation.

The Recommendation provides guidelines for Member States regarding national legal frameworks and measures aimed at prohibiting altogether the import, export and transit of goods with no other practical serving than the infliction of torture, ill treatment or death penalty. It also sets out measures for the responsible regulation regarding the trade in certain pharmaceutical chemicals and law-enforcement equipment to prevent abusive practices. Finally, the Recommendation carries  important provisions on the extensive use of multilateral cooperation methods and channels such as information-exchange and dissemination of best practices among Member States, support to non-Member States and action in other international organisations, to effectively secure torture-free trade across Europe and beyond.

Inspired by the EU ‘Anti-Torture’ Regulation that has served as a model, this Council of Europe Recommendation is all the more crucial at a time when human rights and democracy are being severely challenged. It also illustrates how the Council of Europe and the European Union continue to be partners in promoting human rights

The EU also recognises the great contribution the European Convention on Human Rights, the European Court of Human Rights case-law and the standards developed by the Council of Europe Committee for the Prevention of Torture (CPT) have brought over the years to this common endeavour towards the eradication of torture and inhumane and degrading treatment. The EU thus all the more welcomes the Council of Europe’s recent Recommendation and measures towards strengthening international regulations against trade in goods used for torture and the death penalty and looks forward to working together to further promote action in relevant international forums through in particular the ‘Alliance for Torture-Free Trade’.