United Nations Radio

Torture is still a frequent or even standard practice in many countries, 60 years after the adoption of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

Manfred Nowak (photo), the UN Special Rapporteur on Torture told the UN General Assembly's Social Committee that around the world, millions of people deprived of their liberty have to live under conditions of detention which amount to inhuman and degrading treatment.

The Special Rapporteur stressed that torture and ill-treatment takes place behind closed doors and that due to a lack of public scrutiny an environment conducive for the abuse of detainees can exist.

"Since the criminal justice system is not functioning properly the combined time detainees spend in police custody and remand detention may amount to several years. Aggravated by poverty and a lack of empathy for detainees, the high number of pre-trial detainees leads to severe overcrowding of places of detention resulting in restricted access to adequate food and health care, ventilation, light and low levels of hygiene."

Another concern raised in the report relates to the excessive use of solitary confinement in many countries of the world. It said the weight of medical and psychological evidence points to the serious health effects of the use of solitary confinement.

This is Donn Bobb reporting for United Nations Radio.

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