A/HRC/40/59
I. Introduction
1.
The present report has been prepared pursuant to Human Rights Council resolution
34/19.
II. Activities relating to the mandate
2.
Throughout 2018, the Special Rapporteur participated in a number of thematic
consultations, workshops and events on various issues, including torture prevention and illtreatment of migrants; strengthening national preventive mechanisms; procedural
safeguards regarding the development of a universal protocol for investigation
interviewing; and strengthening the protection mechanisms of gender-specific violence.
3.
In 2018, the Special Rapporteur transmitted 136 communications, jointly with other
mandates or individually, on behalf of individuals exposed to torture and other illtreatment.
4.
From 13 to 24 November 2017, the Special Rapporteur conducted a country visit to
Serbia and Kosovo1 (A/HRC/40/59/Add.1).
5.
From 9 to 20 April 2018, the Special Rapporteur conducted a country visit to
Argentina (A/HRC/40/59/Add.2).
6.
From 28 May to 8 June 2018, the Special Rapporteur conducted a country visit to
Ukraine (A/HRC/40/59/Add.3).
III. Corruption-related torture and ill-treatment
7.
In recent years, there has been a growing awareness of the pervasive, incapacitating
impact of corruption on the effective, transparent and accountable functioning of public
institutions (target 16.6 of the Sustainable Development Goals), including the protection of
human rights. Corruption not only hinders the effective implementation of human rights
obligation, but also creates an environment conducive to human rights abuses, including
torture and ill-treatment.
8.
The mandate of the Special Rapporteur has long recognized that “corrupt and
malfunctioning criminal justice systems are a root cause of torture and ill-treatment of
detainees” 2 and, in 2014, the Subcommittee on Prevention of Torture and Other Cruel,
Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment produced a seminal report highlighting the
correlation between corruption and torture or ill-treatment in places of detention,
concluding that the fight against torture and ill-treatment demands appropriate measures to
eradicate corruption, underpinned by robust democratic principles (CAT/C/52/2, paras. 72–
100). In parallel, there has been a growing body of legal and policy analysis exploring the
interrelations between corruption and human rights abuses more generally, 3 including by
1
2
3
Throughout this document, the reference to Kosovo shall be understood in full compliance with
United Nations Security Council resolution 1244 (1999) and without prejudice to the status of
Kosovo.
Manfred Nowak, in his capacity as Special Rapporteur, addressing the Commission on Crime
Prevention and Criminal Justice on 24 April 2009. See www.unodc.org/unodc/en/frontpage/unhuman-rights-rapporteur-denounces-torture.html.
See, inter alia, Anne Peters, Corruption as a Violation of International Human Rights, Research Paper
No. 2016-18 (Heidelberg, Max Planck Institute for Comparative Public Law and International Law,
2016); International Council on Human Rights Policy, Corruption and Human Rights: Making the
Connection (Geneva, 2009); Martine Boersma and Hans Nelen, eds., Corruption and Human Rights:
Interdisciplinary Perspectives (Intersentia, 2010); Martine Boersma, Corruption: A Violation of
Human Rights and a Crime Under International Law? (Intersentia, 2012); Kolawole Olaniyan,
Corruption and Human Rights Law in Africa (Hart, 2014); and Office of the United Nations High
3