The Medical Documentation of Torture

Until recently, the only medical input to criminal and civil prosecutions relating to allegations of torture was from forensic pathologists investigating mass graves.

It is now recognised, however, that witness evidence from those who survive atrocities can be supported by medical experts in documenting torture both immediately and many years after the event.

As is patently evident from news coverage, the number of asylum seekers in the West fleeing persecution abroad is increasing steadily and there is a real need to provide those involved in examining these individuals with a comprehensive reference source which will underpin the Istanbul Protocol and provide the academic background for bringing prosecutions against alleged torturers before the newly mandated International Criminal Court. This book supports the work of doctors and lawyers undertaking three types of medical investigation: documentation of torture for the purpose of bringing criminal or civil charges in court against individuals or their supporting organisations; verification of allegations of torture, usually for the purposes of publication by organisations such as Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch and Physicians for Human Rights; documentation of torture in support of individual claims for refugee status, provided by doctors at such organisations as the Medical Foundation for the Care of Victims of Torture.

The book will be of practical use to doctors writing medical reports on alleged victims of torture or lawyers working in this field.

It will also be of value to psychologists, human rights activists and academic researchers at all levels who are increasingly engaged in the documentation of torture.

The editor was a member of the Editorial Committee of the Istanbul Protocol and many of the internationally respected contributors were also involved in its development.