REDRESS is a human rights organisation that helps torture survivors obtain justice and reparation. REDRESS works with survivors to help restore their dignity and to make torturers accountable.
REDRESS and Victims' Rights Working Group Members Celebrate International Justice Day 17 July 2010
REDRESS and Victims' Rights Working Group (VRWG) members across the world are celebrating International Justice Day this 17 July, commemorating the adoption of the Rome Statute establishing the International Criminal Court (ICC) in 1998. The ICC is important to victims as the first permanent and independent international justice institution tasked with ending impunity for genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity. International Justice Day serves as a reminder of the urgency for all States to support the Rome Statute, and implement those provisions that relate to victims and witnesses.
UK Torture Inquiry Announcements are a Mixed Bag
7 July 2010 - REDRESS acknowledges the significance of British Prime Minister David Cameron’s announcement to Parliament yesterday of the creation of a judge-led inquiry into whether the UK government and its intelligence agencies were implicated in the improper treatment of detainees abroad that may have occurred in the aftermath of 11 September 2001. It supports the holding of an Inquiry which, according to what has been said, will be fully independent of Parliament, party and Government. We are concerned, however, that the Inquiry will lack powers to compel the attendance of witnesses, including former political leaders and ministers. Read our full statement here
UN Day in Support of Victims of Torture
26 June 2010: REDRESS' Chair, Sir Emyr Jones Parry, speaks out against torture
"JUNE 26 is the UN Day in Support of Victims of Torture. The date is not chosen at random. It was the day, 23 years ago that the United Nations Convention against Torture came into force. The day reminds us that torture is one of the most serious crimes that can be committed. It strikes at the very core of human rights. It is about stripping away the dignity of one human being by another. It is about asserting power and control; it is about inflicting pain and despair."
"Torture spreads like an insidious virus wherever it is allowed to take hold. Torture is illegal in war or in peace, forbidden by Geneva Conventions and by the UN Convention. Its use is immoral and demeans us all. It is seldom effective as the victim will tend to say anything to stop the pain. It dehumanises, lowers moral standards and undermines civilisation and the rule of law."
"Redress works with these survivors to help restore their dignity and to make torturers accountable. It is also an advocate against torture, believing that all governments should honour and implement the undertakings they took on in ratifying the UN Convention against Torture."
Read Sir Emyr's full statement: here
Read REDRESS' statement with Cambodian NGOs on the occassion of 26 June: here
Read the joint statement of the UN Committee against Torture; the Subcommittee on Prevention of Torture; the Special Rapporteur on torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment; and the Board of Trustees of the UN Voluntary Fund for Victims of Torture Statement: here
Award-winning photographer collaborates with REDRESS
REDRESS recently spoke with award winning photographer Jim Goldberg about his recent critically acclaimed exhibition at Photographer’s Gallery in London. ‘Open See’ chronicles the experiences of people who travel from war torn, socially and economically devastated countries, to make new lives in Europe.
This series lays bare the effects of trafficking, torture and its physical and psychological consequences.
Click to see photos: here
In Memoriam: Abdelsalam Hassan
REDRESS mourns the loss of our beloved colleague and friend Abdelsalam Hassan Abdelsalam who tragically died in London on 13 March 2010.
