UN says torture global, states barring investigating

(March 9, 2010) Torture which constitutes a serious crime and a direct attack on the core of human dignity, is a reality in a majority of the world's countries but many governments refuse to let the United Nations investigate the abuse on their territory, the U.N. expert on the issue said on Monday. Austrian lawyer Manfred Nowak told the 47-member United Nations' Human Rights Council in Geneva that it should pay special attention to torture but complained that many governments, including some on the council, blocked his investigations. Nowak, U.N. special investigator said that in the vast majority of states, torture happened either in isolated cases, in a more regular manner, or was widespread and systematic. Nowak said some countries who had invited him for visits, including China, Jordan, Indonesia, Equatorial Guinea and Kazakhstan, had put him under intense surveillance and intimidated witnesses and detainees he was to see. Many others, including Egypt, Ethiopia, India, Iran, Israel, Tunisia and Uzbekistan had failed to respond to requests for visits, while others, including the United States and Russia, had either refused clearance for him to carry out confidential interviews or put off his visit at the last moment.