Blog: Celebrating 40 years of the Convention Against Torture and 15 years of the UK NPM

This Human Rights Day, the UK NPM celebrates the 40^th anniversary of the United Nations Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment, and the 15^th anniversary of the UK National Preventive Mechanism.

On this day 40 years ago, the UN General Assembly adopted the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment,

…in accordance with the principles proclaimed in the Charter of the United Nations, recognition of the equal and inalienable rights of all members of the human family is the foundation of freedom, justice and peace in the world,

Recognizing that those rights derive from the inherent dignity of the human person…

Desiring to make more effective the struggle against torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment throughout the world…

Eighteen years later, the Optional Protocol to the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (OPCAT) was adopted, and in 2009 the UK National Preventive Mechanism was formed, bringing together statutory bodies from across the four nations under the mandate to prevent torture and ill treatment in places where people are deprived of their liberty.

The UK’s NPM is made up of 21 statutory bodies who monitor places where people are deprived of their liberty. Fifteen years after our designation, we are proud to say that more than 3,500 staff and volunteers are currently working to fulfil the OPCAT mandate.

Since the inception of the UK NPM, many improvements have been made to the treatment of people deprived of their liberty, through individual and collective efforts, and international collaborations. In the 15 years that the UK NPM has been operating, we have seen human rights become increasingly embedded into the cultures, practices and staff training programmes of many detention settings, investment into innovative models of rehabilitation for prisoners across the UK, and a growing consideration for the rights of the child in juvenile justice processes.

However, many issues remain unresolved, including an ever-rising prison population and overcrowded conditions, rising levels of self-harm and self‑inflicted deaths in detention, excessive time in cells, insufficient access to healthcare and mental health care, poor material living conditions, lack of purposeful regimes, solitary confinement of children and people with severe mental illness, insufficient staffing, both in numbers and experience, and inconsistent information management, among others. We also remain concerned about the psychological impact of indeterminate sentences or indefinite detention.

The UK NPM will continue to shine a light on these and other concerns about the treatment of people deprived of their liberty in the UK, and to hold governments to account for upholding the human rights of all people reliant on the state for their care.

Please join us in celebrating 40 years of efforts by committed individuals and organisations around the world to end torture and ill treatment, under the guidance of the Convention Against Torture, and 15 years of preventive work by the staff and volunteers that constitute the UK National Preventive Mechanism.

Learn more about the UK NPM and the UN Convention Against Torture: