BENEFITS OF DEVELOPING TORTURE PREVENTION STRATEGIES Torture prevention strategies can assist in: oo identifying short-, mid- and long-term goals oo r esponding effectively to a particular incident, recovery after an historical period of abuse or in post-conflict and transitional contexts oo building capacity within and across departments oo strengthening the administration of justice, rule of law, and independence of the judiciary oo i mproving practices on the part of specific authorities, such as law enforcement, security, prisons, or health sectors oo improving coordination and “joined up thinking” across ministries, departments and services oo preparing budgets and operational plans to apply resources where they are most needed oo identifying the need for technical support and capacity building from donors and external experts oo preparing requests for assistance and funding oo highlighting publicly where steps have been taken and progress made ELEMENTS TO CONSIDER WHEN DEVELOPING A TORTURE PREVENTION STRATEGY prevention  When developing a torture prevention strategy it may be useful to consider and reflect upon the five broad themes that the principal obligations of UNCAT fall under; these provide guidance on the range of issues to be considered. From the beginning it is useful to consider how and by whom the strategy will be implemented in practice, including identifying the government entities with overall responsibility for implementing different parts of the strategy. prohibition redress UNCAT punishment reporting PRINCIPAL OBLIGATIONS OF THE UNCAT Achieving the goals will be easier if they are action-orientated and “SMART” i.e. specific, measurable, achievable, realistic and time-bound. Therefore it is useful if a torture prevention strategy contains the following elements: An overview of the current situation, identifying specific areas to be addressed by the strategy Concrete details of the actions that will be taken An indication of who is to take which actions The timeframe in which each action will be taken Details of how progress will be monitored and evaluated Good strategies indicate those actions to be taken in the short and medium term and those which will be longer term goals. Periodically reviewing progress on the implementation of a torture prevention strategy can provide an opportunity to highlight achievements made to date and ensure the strategy remains relevant. A review can also critically evaluate and build upon lessons learnt from previous actions. If a strategy sets out clearly defined indicators of progress, including timeframes, this can make the process of review easier. Therefore it is helpful to consider how the strategy will be reviewed at the outset of its development. TOOL: State strategies to prevent and respond to torture and other ill-treatment or punishment 2/8

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