Convention against torture, 40 years later

This December 2024, as we celebrate the 40th anniversary of the United Nations Convention against Torture (CAT), recent images from Syrian prisons remind us that torture is still very present globally. On the other hand, this anniversary is also an opportunity to take stock at home. Geneva is an emblematic city in its activism which often looks internationally, but what about the prevention of torture in Switzerland? Switzerland is often cited as an international example for its quality of life. However, between prison overcrowding and police violence, the country still has room for improvement.

Although the birthplace of the World Organization Against Torture (OMCT), Switzerland does not explicitly condemn torture in its Penal Code, despite the obligation of its criminalization by the CAT. “It’s a way of making invisible a reality that exists in Switzerland, that is to say the use of violence, particularly by state agents, against people put in a vulnerable situation,” explains Olivier Peter, Geneva lawyer engaged in the defense of human rights and member of the OMCT executive council.

In Switzerland, asylum seekers, including unaccompanied minors, are particularly vulnerable. According to Olivier Peter, “there is in particular a case where minor refugees reported having suffered violence by private security agents mandated by the federal authorities and locked in premises for hours without legal basis.” Prison overcrowding is also worrying. In Geneva, the Champ-Dollon prison regularly exceeds its capacity, exacerbating detention conditions, contrary to international standards.

So what should Switzerland do? “We must criminalize torture. The credibility of the anti-torture policy requires putting good practices in place in Switzerland, which we will be able to better export. We must also support the organizations that are on the front line, as well as human rights defenders, by having an effective asylum, reception and support policy,” says Olivier Peter. “The DFA’s suspension of funding to Palestinian human rights organizations, essential to documenting torture and ill-treatment by Israeli authorities, is an unacceptable example of a lack of consistency.”

Despite its shortcomings, Geneva has a special role to play as a human rights city, and stands out as a country-wide example. “Geneva is sometimes more courageous than other cantons and takes measures as a city and as a canton which move towards increased recognition of human rights,” explains Olivier Peter. The Geneva Constitution provides for fundamental rights which are not in the Federal Constitution. “It is a canton which can serve as an example at the national level, particularly in the fight against human trafficking. It is also the consequence of a strong and well-established civil society, supported in its local work by the City, which puts pressure on the authorities and which allows certain progress.”

Respect for human rights must begin at home, and on the occasion of the 40th anniversary of the Convention against Torture, Switzerland has the opportunity to question its international commitments and local practices. As Olivier Peter points out, “we have the privilege of being able to say and do what we do without the threat of imprisonment. But it’s an additional responsibility: we have to speak even louder for people who unfortunately cannot do so.”

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