A Licnese to Torture ? Chapter 1 Introduction 1.1 Torture and Myanmar’s Obligation Torture is a treatment always prohibited and never justified in the civilized world. The absolute prohibition on torture matters because it is “an assault on human dignity”2 and the physical, psychological or mental impact of torture may remain permanent. Torture takes many different forms and can be practiced for different purposes. International declarations and instructions on war law and customs were issued regarding torture prior to World War II. The Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) became the first international human rights instrument outlawing torture following the establishment of the United Nations in 1948 as Article 5 of the UDHR asserts “No one shall be subjected to torture or to cruel, inhumane or degrading treatment or punishment.”3 After two years without an international treaty legally banning torture, the European Convention on Human Rights joined the UDHR as the very first treaty prohibiting torture, using the exact same phrase and wording. Being adopted in 1966, the Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), a source of international human rights law and part of the Bill of Rights, prohibits torture and cruel, inhuman and degrading treatments. ICCPR does not provide a legal definition of ‘torture’ and other aforementioned acts. In this regard, the Human Rights Committee considered that “the distinctions” between those different types of treatments and punishments “depend on the nature, purpose and severity of the treatment applied”.4 There was no globally accepted definition of torture until 1975, when the United Nations General Assembly adopted the Declaration on the Protection of All Persons from Being Subjected to Torture and Other Cruel, Inhumane or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (Torture Declaration) that defines ‘torture or other cruel, inhumane or degrading treatment or punishment’.5 Then, the first legally binding international treaty exclusively emphasizing the prohibition of torture emerged when the 1984 Convention Against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment and Punishment (UNCAT) was adopted by the General Assembly.6 12 2 Andrea Wigger, “Torture: An affront to humanity”, ICRC, June 25, 2013, https://www.icrc.org/en/doc/resources/documents/interview/2013/06-26-torture.htm (accessed June 10, 2023) 3 1948 Universal Declaration of Human Rights, Art 5, 4 Human Rights Committee, CCPR General Comment No.20: Article 7 (Prohibition of Torture, or Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment), https://www.refworld.org/docid/453883fb0.html 5 1975 Declaration on the Protection of All Persons from Being Subjected to Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment, Art 1 6 1984 Convention Against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment and Punishment Equality Myanmar