A/HRC/46/26
a Special Rapporteur to examine questions relating to torture. 5 In its resolution, the
Commission provided for a mandate of one year, gave the Special Rapporteur a specific
mandate to “seek and receive credible and reliable information from Governments,
specialized agencies, intergovernmental organizations and non-governmental organizations”,
and requested the “Secretary-General to appeal to all Governments to cooperate with and
assist the Special Rapporteur in the performance of his tasks and to furnish all information
requested”. Unlike treaty bodies, which are mandated to monitor compliance of States parties
with their treaty obligations, the Special Rapporteur on torture is called upon to examine
questions relating to the prohibition and prevention of torture in all current and aspiring States
Members of the United Nations, and regardless of their treaty obligations.
16.
Since 1985, relevant resolutions have been regularly adopted by the Commission on
Human Rights, then subsequently by the Human Rights Council,6 extending the mandate of
the Special Rapporteur and the term of the mandate from one year to two, and then to three
years, while maintaining the annual cycle of reporting, underscoring the important
contribution of the mandate in the fight against torture and other forms of ill-treatment. In all
resolutions, Governments were requested to cooperate with the Special Rapporteur,
progressively developing from a mere request to the Secretary-General “to appeal on all
Governments to cooperate with and assist the Special Rapporteur in the performance of his
tasks and to furnish all information requested” (in Commission resolution 1985/33) to urging
States to “cooperate fully with and to assist the Special Rapporteur in the performance of his
or her tasks, to supply all necessary information requested by him or her and to fully and
expeditiously respond to his or her urgent appeals, and [urging] those Governments that have
not yet responded to communications transmitted to them by the Special Rapporteur to
answer without further delay”. Since its establishment, the Human Rights Council, in its
resolutions to extend the mandate of the Special Rapporteur, has further reminded States of
their obligations to eradicate torture and ill-treatment, including by taking preventive
measures, to guarantee the rehabilitation of and redress to victims, and to ensure
accountability for torture and ill-treatment.
17.
The modus operandi of the mandate of the Special Rapporteur has evolved
progressively over the past 35 years. In this connection, in his report submitted in 1994 to the
Commission on Human Rights on the question of the human rights of all persons subjected
to any form of detention or imprisonment, in particular, torture and other cruel, inhuman or
degrading treatment or punishment (E/CN.4/1992/17), the mandate holder addressed a
request by a Member State for clarification on the urgent appeal procedure and the criteria
used by the Special Rapporteur to make such appeals to Governments. Referring to the
humanitarian nature of the urgent appeal and the opportunity for Governments to look into
the matter of urgent concern and to uphold their obligations under international law by
instructing the detaining authorities to respect the individual’s right to physical and mental
integrity, the Special Rapporteur indicated a number of factors that the mandate holder takes
into account in assessing urgent appeals:
(a)
The known reliability of the source of the information;
(b)
The internal consistency of the information;
(c)
The consistency of the information with information on other cases from the
State in question that has come to the Special Rapporteur’s attention;
(d)
The existence of authoritative reports on torture practices from national
sources, such as official commissions of inquiry;
(e)
The findings of other international bodies, such as United Nations country
rapporteurs and representatives, the Human Rights Committee, the Committee against
Torture and regional human rights bodies, in particular, the European Committee for the
Prevention of Torture and Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment;
5
6
4
The mandate was expanded to include “other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment”
in 1986.
Pursuant to General Assembly resolution 60/251 of 15 March 2006.