Guide to International Human Rights Mechanisms - Brookings

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International Mechanisms | UN Bodies
Time issues The Special Rapporteur will expedite urgent appeals in cases where torture may be
imminent, acting in many cases in less than twenty-four hours. While there is no formal time limit
for submitting communications to the Special Rapporteur, in practice, he does not consider cases
older than two years.
language and format Communications submitted may be in any of the UN’s official languages:
Arabic, Chinese, English, French, Russian or Spanish. There is no required format, but at a
minimum, information provided should include as much as possible of the following: the victim’s
full name, age, nationality, occupation; the date, time and place of arrest and detention; a detailed
description of torture or ill-treatment or why it is feared to be imminent; as well as identities of
perpetrators, dates of visits of family, lawyers and medical professionals; and contact information of
the person or organization submitting the communication. The Special Rapporteur’s questionnaire
(below) is recommended to ensure that all the necessary information is provided.
Procedure When a communication is received with adequate information, the Special Rapporteur
will forward it to the government with a request for investigation and, in the case of urgent appeals,
immediate action to forestall further torture or ill-treatment.
Potential result The Special Rapporteur may issue an urgent appeal or allegation letter to the
government expressing his concern about a threatened or completed act of torture. Summaries of
each such communication and any governmental replies are publicly presented to the Human Rights
Council with the Special Rapporteur’s annual report (but are considered confidential beforehand
and are not to be shared in advance with the authors of communications). He may also undertake a
country mission to address issues in greater depth with domestic authorities.
send communications to:
Special Rapporteur on Torture
c/o Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights
United Nations Office at Geneva
CH-1211 Geneva 10, Switzerland
E-mail: urgent-action@ohchr.org (include “Special Rapporteur on Torture” in the subject line)
for more information
Special Rapporteur’s website: www.ohchr.org/english/issues/torture/rapporteur/index.htm
Guide to International Human Rights Mechanisms
for Internally Displaced Persons and their Advocates