{"id":362109,"date":"2026-05-04T15:43:01","date_gmt":"2026-05-04T10:13:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/?p=362109"},"modified":"2026-05-04T15:43:01","modified_gmt":"2026-05-04T10:13:01","slug":"united-nations-committee-against-torture-cat","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/united-nations-committee-against-torture-cat\/","title":{"rendered":"United Nations Committee against Torture (CAT)"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><strong>News:<\/strong> The United Nations Committee against Torture (CAT) raised serious concerns over Pakistan\u2019s mass deportation of Afghan refugees under the 2023 Illegal Foreigners\u2019 Repatriation Plan, citing lack of individual protection assessments and risks of refoulement.<\/p>\n<h2>About United Nations Committee against Torture (CAT)<\/h2>\n<figure style=\"width: 308px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/encrypted-tbn0.gstatic.com\/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcQINQtM384efjCNE-jlC0OGKHP1daHXO5D8hA&amp;s\" alt=\"United Nations Committee against Torture (CAT)\" width=\"308\" height=\"163\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Source: National Campaign Against Torture<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<ul>\n<li class=\"text--body-copy--gray without-margins\">It is the<strong> body of independent experts<\/strong> that <strong>monitors the\u00a0<\/strong><strong>implementation\u00a0<\/strong>of\u00a0the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment by its States parties.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Headquarters:<\/strong> <strong>Geneva, Switzerland<\/strong>, operating under the<strong><a href=\"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/answered-discuss-the-structure-functioning-and-objective-of-the-office-of-the-high-commissioner-for-human-rights-ohchr\/#:~:text=Human%20rights%20research:%20OHCHR%20also%20provides%20a,human%20rights%20challenges%2C%20and%20act%20as%20the\"> Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR)<\/a>.\u00a0<\/strong><\/li>\n<li><strong>Composition:<\/strong> The CAT is composed of<strong> 10 independent experts<\/strong>\u00a0serving in their<strong> personal capacity, and not as representatives of a State.<\/strong>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Eligibility:<\/strong> They must have <strong>high moral standing and recognised competence<\/strong> in the field of human rights.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Membership: The States<\/strong> determine<strong> committee membership. <\/strong><\/li>\n<li><strong>Term:<\/strong> Each member is <strong>nominated by a State Party to the Convention<\/strong> and<strong> elected by States Parties for a four-year term.<\/strong>\n<ul>\n<li>They may be re-elected if re-nominated.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Equitable geographical distribution and the usefulness of the participation of some persons<\/strong> having legal experience have to be taken into account.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li><strong>How the committee works:<\/strong>\n<ul>\n<li>All States parties are obliged to <strong>submit regular reports to the Committee on how the rights are being implemented.<\/strong><\/li>\n<li>States <strong>must report initially one year after acceding to the Convention<\/strong> and then every four years.<\/li>\n<li>The <strong>Committee examines each report and addresses its concerns and recommendations to the State party<\/strong> in the form o<strong>f &#8220;concluding observations&#8221;.<\/strong><\/li>\n<li data-section-id=\"1yftkbe\" data-start=\"690\" data-end=\"846\">In addition to the reporting procedure, the <strong>Convention provides three other mechanisms<\/strong> through which the Committee carries out its monitoring functions:\n<ul>\n<li data-section-id=\"148b4mo\" data-start=\"697\" data-end=\"792\">It can <strong data-start=\"706\" data-end=\"740\">consider individual complaints<\/strong> from persons alleging violations of their rights.<\/li>\n<li data-section-id=\"33wegz\" data-start=\"795\" data-end=\"830\">It can <strong data-start=\"804\" data-end=\"827\">undertake inquiries<\/strong>.<\/li>\n<li data-section-id=\"1js0ise\" data-start=\"833\" data-end=\"880\">It can <strong data-start=\"842\" data-end=\"877\">consider inter-state complaints<\/strong>.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li><strong>Session:<\/strong> It meets<strong> three times per year in Geneva<\/strong>. Each session lasts two to four weeks.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Functions:<\/strong> The Committee against Torture (CAT) monitors State compliance with the Convention through five key functions.\n<ul>\n<li>Under <strong data-start=\"189\" data-end=\"221\">State Reporting (Article 19)<\/strong>, each State must submit a <strong>report within one year<\/strong> of joining the Convention and then <strong>every four years<\/strong>.<\/li>\n<li>Under the <strong data-start=\"458\" data-end=\"492\">Inquiry Procedure (Article 20)<\/strong>, the Committee can conduct a <strong>confidential inquiry<\/strong> if there is reliable information that torture is being systematically practised in a State.\n<ul>\n<li>However, this <strong>inquiry cannot happen if the State has not accepted the Committee\u2019s authority<\/strong> under Article 20.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li>Under <strong data-start=\"926\" data-end=\"969\">Inter-State Communications (Article 21)<\/strong>, one <strong>State can complain against another State<\/strong> for not following the Convention, but only if both States accept this system.\n<ul>\n<li>So far, <strong>no such complaint<\/strong> has been made.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li>Under <strong data-start=\"1151\" data-end=\"1193\">Individual Communications (Article 22)<\/strong>, <strong>individuals<\/strong> can file <strong>complaints<\/strong> if their rights under the Convention are violated, provided the State has accepted this procedure.<\/li>\n<li>Through <strong data-start=\"1339\" data-end=\"1359\">General Comments<\/strong>, the Committee explains the meaning and scope of the Convention\u2019s provisions.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2>About Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment<\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li>The <strong>Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment<\/strong> (the \u201cTorture Convention\u201d) was <strong>adopted<\/strong> by the <strong>General Assembly of the United Nations in 1984.<\/strong><\/li>\n<li>The Convention <strong>entered into force<\/strong> in <strong>1987<\/strong><strong>.<\/strong><\/li>\n<li><strong>Membership:<\/strong> It currently has <strong>154 States as signatories.<\/strong>\n<ul>\n<li>India has been a <strong>signatory to it since 1997,<\/strong> but India has<strong> not ratified<\/strong> it.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li data-section-id=\"cpgi2g\" data-start=\"0\" data-end=\"255\"><strong data-start=\"2\" data-end=\"28\" data-is-only-node=\"\">Definition of Torture<\/strong>: <strong>Article 1 of the Convention<\/strong> defines <strong>torture as the deliberate infliction of severe physical or mental pain for purposes<\/strong> such as obtaining information, punishment, or intimidation, <strong>with the involvement or consent of a public official.<\/strong><\/li>\n<li data-section-id=\"36wl1h\" data-start=\"257\" data-end=\"455\"><strong data-start=\"259\" data-end=\"286\" data-is-only-node=\"\">Universal Jurisdiction:<\/strong> <strong>Article 5 requires<\/strong> States to either prosecute or extradite persons accused of torture, regardless of where the crime was committed or the nationality of the offender.<\/li>\n<li data-section-id=\"36wl1h\" data-start=\"257\" data-end=\"455\">It is to ensure protection for all individuals from torture and other cruel, inhumane or degrading treatment.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>News: The United Nations Committee against Torture (CAT) raised serious concerns over Pakistan\u2019s mass deportation of Afghan refugees under the 2023 Illegal Foreigners\u2019 Repatriation Plan, citing lack of individual protection assessments and risks of refoulement. About United Nations Committee against Torture (CAT) It is the body of independent experts that monitors the\u00a0implementation\u00a0of\u00a0the Convention against Torture&hellip; <a class=\"more-link\" href=\"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/united-nations-committee-against-torture-cat\/\">Continue reading <span class=\"screen-reader-text\">United Nations Committee against Torture (CAT)<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":10366,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1566,164,1236,12039],"tags":[11872,11853],"class_list":["post-362109","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-daily-factly-articles","category-international-relations-daily-factly-articles","category-international-organisations","category-knolls","tag-9pm-daily-factly","tag-dd-news","entry"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","views":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/362109","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/10366"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=362109"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/362109\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=362109"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=362109"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=362109"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}