| AFRICAN UNION | UNION AFRICAINE | |
|---|---|---|
| الاتحاد الأفريقي African Commission on Human & Peoples' Rights | UNIÃO AFRICANA Commission Africaine des Droits de l'Homme & des Peuples | |
| No. 31 Bijilo Annex Lay-out, Kombo North District, Western Region, P. O. Box 673, Banjul, The Gambia Tel: (220) (220) 441 05 05 / 441 05 06, Fax: (220) 441 05 04 E-mail: achpr@achpr.org; Web: www.achpr.org |
**STRATEGIC PLAN OF THE COMMITTEE FOR THE PREVENTION OF TORTURE
IN AFRICA 2012 - 2014**
A. THE COMMITTEE FOR THE PREVENTION OF TORTURE IN AFRICA
i. Background
The absolute prohibition of torture and other forms of ill treatment, considered by the international community as a peremptory norm, breach of which constitutes a very serious human rights violation, is established in Article 5 of the African Charter on Human and Peoples Rights (African Charter). This prohibition notwithstanding, torture is still a widespread problem in most parts of the African continent. The prevalence of torture on the continent is commonly attributed to ignorance by the general public of their rights and of officials of the law and their responsibilities, lack of training and information, impunity, discrimination, dysfunctional judicial systems, lack of monitoring and advisory mechanisms, corruption and deficiencies in governance and the rule of law, amongst others.
Alive to this reality, the African Commission on Human and Peoples' Rights (the African Commission or Commission) in October 2002 at its 32nd Ordinary Session, took
a significant step in addressing the problem of torture on the continent by adopting the Measures and Guidelines for the Prohibition and Prevention of Torture, Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment in Africa, commonly known as the Robben Island Guidelines or RIG. The RIG were developed from a joint workshop organized by the African Commission and the Association for the Prevention of Torture (APT) in Robben Island, South Africa, from 12 -14 February 2002 and brought together African and international experts from different professional backgrounds dealing with the issue of torture.
The Robben Island Guidelines are a set of concrete measures for the implementation of the provisions of Article 5 of the African Charter on the prohibition and prevention of torture. The RIG are divided into three parts: the first part calls on States to ratify existing international instruments on the prohibition and prevention of torture as well as to domesticate and effectively implement them; the second part sets out a range of preventive measures covering the different stages of criminal procedure and the third part outlines ways of responding to the needs of victims of torture.