Torture

In 1984, the United Nations introduced the Convention Against Torture (UNCAT), and 155 nations ratified and implemented the convention.¹ The legislation was intended to end the use of torture as a form of punishment among its signatory countries.² In 2017, the Landmark Agreement for Torture-Free Trade was introduced with the purpose of eliminating torture devices from international trade such as spiked batons and leg irons.³ By 2017, 106 countries had eliminated the death penalty, and four nations accounted for 84 percent of the world’s executions. Over 50 percent of all documented executions were performed in Iran, and with Saudi Arabia, Iraq and Pakistan, the four nations collectively carried out 84 percent of all executions worldwide in 2017.⁴ In the Philippines, Morocco, Mexico and Uzbekistan torture is known to be used by law enforcement to solicit confessions, according to Amnesty International.⁵