Russia has formally withdrawn from the European Convention for the Prevention of Torture, according to a statement from the Council of Europe. The move ends the anti-torture committee’s independent oversight of Russian prisons and detention facilities.
Moscow announced its intention to leave the convention last year, but the withdrawal has now taken effect. Russia joined the agreement in the late 1990s.
Human rights activists have long criticized what they describe as widespread torture and degrading treatment in Russian police stations and detention centers. Nearly all Ukrainian prisoners of war released from Russian custody have also reported torture, according to the report.
Between 1998 and 2021, the anti-torture committee made 30 visits and inspected 450 detention sites in Russia. The country was described as the only member that almost never allowed reports from those visits to be published. Documents from just four visits were made public.
Since Russia launched its full-scale war against Ukraine, the committee has received multiple reports of torture and mistreatment in Russia and in Russian-occupied areas of Ukraine. Moscow has not permitted any further visits by the body.
The European Convention for the Prevention of Torture, adopted in the late 1980s, is part of the Council of Europe’s human rights framework. Alan Mitchell, president of the anti-torture committee, said independent monitoring of detention facilities remains a fundamental safeguard against torture and mistreatment.
Sources: Der Spiegel.