24. Procedures should be instituted to ensure the integrity of interrogation records,
including proper storage.
Evidence from non-recorded interrogations should be
excluded from court proceedings (ie no ‘verballing’).
25. The recording should be made available to the interrogated person and his or her
lawyer of choice. Where the record is in writing, the interrogated person and his or her
lawyer should be given the opportunity to correct it.
Commentary
The Special Rapporteur on Torture has identified certain safeguards that should be adopted to
guard against torture during interrogation or interviews. The safeguards are as follows:
•
each interrogation should be initiated with the identification of all persons present;
•
all interrogation sessions should be recorded and preferably video recorded;
•
the identity of all persons present should be included in the records;
•
evidence from non-recorded interrogations should be excluded from court proceedings;45
•
the information recorded should be available to the interrogated person and, when
provided by the law, to his or her counsel;46
•
interrogation of detained persons should only take place at official interrogation centres.47
These safeguards can also help protect officials against false allegations of torture or other
forms of ill-treatment.
26. After any interrogation, the interrogated person should have the right to request a
medical examination by a competent and impartial medical practitioner.
45
Interim report by Special Rapporteur on the question of torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading
treatment or punishment to the General Assembly, A/57/173, 2 July 2002 at para 22.
46
Report of the Special Rapporteur on Torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment,
‘Civil and Political Rights, including the questions of torture and detention’, E/CN.4/2004/56, 23 December
2003 at para 34.
47
Report by the Special Rapporteur on torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment,
‘Question of the human rights of all persons subjected to any form of detention or imprisonment’, Commission
on Human Rights, forty-eighth session, E/CN.4/1992/17, 27 December 1991 at 106.
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