The stubborn pursuit of justice: extraterritorial redress for torture

Abstract

This thesis examines the potential avenues for seeking redress available to a torture survivor who is outside the country where he or she was tortured and unable to access effective domestic remedies within that country. In this context, to seek redress means to seek official recognition that there has been a violation by the state and/or individual responsible, whether it takes the form of a civil award, a criminal prosecution, or a finding by a UN or regional body. Despite recent progress in the recognition of victims’ rights, there are still many obstacles in practice, firstly to obtaining a remedy, and secondly to its enforcement. Some individual torture survivors have received reparations and have seen some changes in state policy on torture; many others have found their claims blocked for legal, practical or political reasons, or where they have succeeded in pursuing their complaint, the state concerned has simply refused to comply with the decision. Much more remains to be done to challenge the impunity of states and individuals responsible for torture