In a Recommendation adopted on Wednesday 31 March, the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe calls on member states to take measures against the trade in goods, equipment and pharmaceutical products used to carry out the death penalty, torture and other inhuman and degrading treatment.
“Deeply concerned” by the fact that equipment “whose only practical use is torture” can be marketed in Member States, including at European trade fairs or on the websites of European companies or companies based in Europe, the Committee of Ministers recommends a review of national legislation and practices and the dissemination of the Recommendation to relevant institutions and organisations (both human rights organisations and companies designing law enforcement equipment, for example).
A review of the implementation of the Recommendation is planned in 5 years at the latest.
This Recommendation “reflects the Council of Europe’s unwavering commitment to the abolition of the death penalty and the obligation of its 47 member states, all Parties to the European Convention on Human Rights, to prohibit torture and inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment”.
Link to the Recommendation: https://bit.ly/2PmIPfN (Original version in French by Véronique Leblanc)