UN Special Rapporteur on Torture Alice Jill Edwards said that torture used by Russian security forces in Ukraine is a systematic practice approved by the Russian leadership. The New York Times newspaper reports this.
“This is not an accident, not anomalous behavior. This is organized as part of a government policy of intimidation and punishment in order to obtain information and confessions,” Edwards said following her seven-day trip to Ukraine.
During this trip, Edwards also met with witnesses who confirmed that torture, including rape and beatings, is systematically used in detention facilities located in Russian-controlled territories.
The UN representative added that since receiving the mandate in 2022, she has contacted the Russian authorities at least seven times, trying to draw their attention to the actions of law enforcement officers, but has never received a response.
According to Edwards, Moscow’s lack of response to numerous cases of violence against detainees and prisoners is tantamount to tacit approval of torture.
“Russian authorities have still not sent a directive to their soldiers and military commanders informing them that torture and similar types of detention and interrogation are unacceptable. They deny they do it, but show me a military directive against torture,” Edwards added.
In November 2022, the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights released report, focusing on the treatment of prisoners of war during the full-scale war in Ukraine. Among other things, the experts concluded that the Russians systematically tortured and mistreated Ukrainian prisoners of war. In addition, not only military personnel, but also civilians of Ukraine who ended up in Russian “filtration camps” were subjected to torture.
2023-09-10 13:27:00
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