U.N. Convention on Torture and the Prospects for Enhancement

This text assesses the suitability of the UN Convention against torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment (hereinafter referred to as the Torture Convention) as a means of protecting and enforcing the right to be free from torture. Evaluation of the Convention's ability to attain these ends is undertaken through a critical commentary on its substantive and enforcement provisions and on other human rights instruments.;The effectiveness of the procedural mechanisms for enforcing the Torture Convention on the national and international planes, and the questions that may arise in the application of such mechanisms, are also appraised. The legal positions taken by States at the negotiating table during the drafting of the Torture Convention are scrutinized, as is their effect on the present form and contents of these provisions.;This book is a tool for understanding the legal problems inherent in the enforcement of human rights and the right to be free from torture. It should be of interest to law professors, law students, international lawyers, governmental officials, and NGOs involved in the promotion of human rights.