Part I Prohibition of torture: The legal background Article 16.1 of the Convention against Torture requires that “each State Party shall undertake to prevent (…) other acts of cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment which do not amount to torture as defined in article 1, when such acts are committed by or at the instigation of or with the consent or acquiescence of a public official or other person acting in an official capacity.” Therefore, any act that falls short of the definition of torture because it lacks one or more of the criteria may still be covered under the prohibition outlined in article 16 of the Convention against Torture.18 Governments and officials sometimes assume that, because these forms of cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment do not come within the definition of torture, there is some leeway in whether they may be permitted in extreme circumstances. Such assumptions are completely wrong. Under international law, there is no leeway regarding the prohibition of all forms of cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment. International law prohibits all such treatment, in all circumstances. This is true under international human rights law and international humanitarian law, which prohibits the ill-treatment of persons deprived of their liberty everywhere and at all times. Key points: Chapter 1 • Article 1 of the Convention against Torture defines torture using three cumulative elements: the intentional infliction of severe mental or physical pain; with the direct or indirect involvement of a public official; for a specific purpose. • Torture is prohibited under international law and can never be justified. The prohibition on torture is absolute and non-derogable. • Cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment is also absolutely prohibited and non-derogable. Further reading In the CD-Rom Human Rights Committee, general comment No. 20: replaces general comment 7 concerning prohibition of torture and cruel treatment or punishment (art. 7); 10 March 1992 Combating Torture: A Manual for Action; Amnesty International; 2003 Torture in International Law: A Guide to Jurisprudence; Association for the Prevention of Torture, Center for Justice and International Law; 2008 Defusing the Ticking Bomb Scenario: Why we must say NO to torture, always; Association for the Prevention of Torture; 2007 18 See Kostadin Nikolov Keremedchiv v. Bulgaria, Committee against Torture, Communication 257/2004, views adopted on 11 November 2008. Chapter 1: What is torture? | 15