A United Nations expert panel today completed its review of efforts by Zambia and Israel to implement a key international treaty against torture, recommending that both countries improve certain procedures to be more in line with the accord's provisions.
Grant requests in 2001 to a United Nations trust fund for victims of torture totalled $1 million more than last year and will likely increase by the same amount next year, according to a new report released today at UN Headquarters in New York.
In a continuing bid to eradicate the practice of torture, top United Nations officials today used the occasion of the annual observance of International Day in Support of Victims of Torture to call for renewed efforts to end impunity and prevent cruel treatment and punishment.
On behalf of Secretary-General Kofi Annan, United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights Mary Robinson has approved grants totalling $8 million to organizations supporting survivors of torture.
A lead United Nations human rights body has convened in Geneva to review measures adopted by eight UN Member States to prevent and punish acts of torture.
The lead United Nations human rights body today condemned all forms of torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment, which it said "could never be justified under any circumstances."
