HRW and 15 other organizations call on the Lebanese government to protect citizens from torture

June 27. (EUROPA PRESS) –

The NGO Human Rights Watch (HRW) has asked this Monday, together with 15 organizations in a joint statement on the occasion of the International Day in Support of Victims of Torture, to the Lebanese authorities to “effectively” protect all people, including those detained , torture and cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment.

“Although Lebanon’s anti-torture framework has improved on paper, torture remains prevalent, and accountability for torture and ill-treatment is elusive,” said Human Rights Watch’s Lebanon researcher. , Aya Majzoub.

In his opinion, “Lebanon must show that it takes the fight against torture seriously, and it should start by moving forward on the numerous complaints of torture that have been lost in the judiciary without effective investigations being carried out.”

In 2017, the Lebanese Parliament passed a law criminalizing torture, and in July 2019 the government appointed the five members of the National Preventive Mechanism against Torture (MNP).

HRW denounces that the law adopts a statute of limitations of three to ten years to prosecute torture that begins to run when the victim is released from custody or detention, contrary to international standards, which hold that torture should not prescribe.

Likewise, the organization has criticized that the law does not criminalize cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment, prohibited by the Convention against Torture.

The law does not explicitly prohibit referring torture complaints to military courts, which according to human rights organizations do not respect the right to a fair trial and lack independence.

In this regard, Lebanese Human Rights organizations have documented repeated breaches by the security forces and the judiciary in applying the law against torture and the provisions of the criminal procedure code that seek to protect the rights of detainees. .

“The Lebanese authorities must promptly and impartially investigate all allegations of torture, allocate a sufficient budget so that the torture prevention unit can get to work, and bring the anti-torture law in line with international standards,” Majzoub concluded. .