19
South Korea, Argentina and the USSR, the concentration has been on certain Latin American countries: Chile, relentless since the September 1973 coup in its systematic use of torture; Uruguay, continuing its suppression of the organized labour movement and other political opposition; and Brazil, where the hard-line military establishment opposed cautious attempts towards liberalization and carried out many new arrests throughout 1974 and 1975. These countries receive much attention for two reasons: first, any new political detainee is in danger of torture, and second, AI often receives reliable information about arrests there quickly enough to intervene.
By providing a mechanism for rapid international action, the Campaign for the Abolition of Torture narrows a gap that had previously been open, even though action taken directly for individuals is necessarily limited to a small percentage of the many possible victims. Furthermore, there are many countries where torture is equally systematic but from which vital information about individual cases reaches AI far too late-after the worst has already happened.
Nevertheless, wherever rapid action is possible, it is taken, and there have been some positive results: improved conditions for a prisoner, news of a release, en- couraging letters from a prisoner's friends or relatives, or speedy acknowledge- ment by the authorities that a prisoner is detained or charged (the end of incom- municado detention often means relative safety from torture).
In addition to initiating various news releases, the CAT Department has issued special documents to be used for action by AI national sections and others, such as a booklet in July 1974 on the public floggings of dissidents in Namibia (a practice stopped by South African court order in February 1975), a letter from a Spanish woman in November 1974 in which she described her torture in a Madrid prison, and an extensive feature article in February 1975 on arbitrary arrests and torture in Paraguay, Uruguay and Argentina. In May 1975 two furth- er items were in preparation: a selection from affidavits sworn by Mozambiquan victims of torture who suffered under Portuguese colonial rule and a paper con- cerning the torture of women for submission to the World Conference of Inter- national Women's Year being held in Mexico City from 19 June to 2 July 1975 under the auspices of the Economic and Social Council of the United Nations.
A second, revised edition of the Amnesty International Report on Torture was published in January 1975. The 246-page report includes updated material on Chile, North Vietnam, Portugal, Greece, Turkey, South Korea, Cyprus and Saudi Arabia - the latter two in the report for the first time. (See chapter on Information and Publications.)
Current information regarding incidents and trends of torture as well as news about Al's activities against torture are provided in the CAT Bulletin, started in June 1974 and published monthly with the AI Newsletter. Every issue of the two-page Bulletin also includes one or more appeals asking individuals to write on behalf of victims of torture.
Publicity and urgent action campaigns have not been the only forms of direct response to the continuing flow of allegations of torture from all parts of the world. Approaches have been made by letters and telegrams to several dozen governments, often accompanied by publicity in the CAT Bulletin, and some- times followed up by special action through the Al national sections. There have
No comments yet.
Private notes are available after approval.