Preventing Torture An Operational Guide for National Human Rights Institutions United Nations Rules for the Protection of Juveniles Deprived of their Liberty Rule 85 The personnel should receive such training as will enable them to carry out their responsibilities effectively, in particular in child psychology, child welfare and international standards and norms of human rights and the rights of the child, including the present rules. Introduction Providing professional training programmes for public officials is a critical strategy to help prevent torture and ill-treatment of persons deprived of their liberty.29 All personnel involved in the arrest, interrogation and detention of persons should receive training on human rights and, in particular, on the absolute prohibition of torture. NHRIs can play an important role in contributing to the provision of this training by developing training tools and delivering training courses. However, it is important to note that training programmes offered by NHRIs will generally only be useful when there is clear political will to prevent torture. In these cases, training programmes should be integrated into the general work and procedure of the institution, whether it is a police service or prison service. To achieve the greatest impact, the training programme should have the strong endorsement and support of that institution’s leadership. When torture occurs at the instigation of an institution’s authorities, or is tolerated by them, training will not be the right approach. It may in fact be counterproductive as it provides an opportunity for the institution’s leadership to publicly promote that they are making efforts to prevent torture. Police officers and prison warders may also be hostile to what they view as outside interference in how they do their job. They may resent receiving training from representatives of NHRIs, whom they might consider to be idealists with no practical understanding of the difficulty of their job. It is therefore important for NHRIs to carefully consider their strategy for the development and delivery of training programmes. In some cases the NHRI may not be the most appropriate organization to provide training. Instead it could contribute to the development and revision of curricula and training materials, as well as monitor and evaluate the effectiveness of training programmes. 1. Developing and revising training curricula and materials Ensuring that human rights standards and principles are included in training curricula for public officials involved in the arrest, interrogation and detention of people deprived of their liberty is an essential preventive measure. According to the Convention against Torture, States parties have a duty to ensure that information on the prohibition and prevention of torture is included in training programmes for law enforcement and other public officials. 29 See Human Rights Committee general comment No. 20: “Enforcement personnel, medical personnel, police officers and any person involved in the custody or treatment of any individual subjected to any form of arrest, detention or imprisonment must receive appropriate instruction and training. States Parties should inform the Committee of the instruction and training given and the way in which the prohibition of article 7 forms an integral part of the operational rules and ethical standards to be followed by such persons” (para. 10). 56 | Chapter 6: Training public officials