JDI Urges U.S. to Improve Domestic Human Rights Protections

Prisoner rape constitutes torture, as defined in international human rights law. The U.S. has committed to upholding the absolute right of all people, including inmates, to be free from torture. It has done so by ratifying the Convention Against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (CAT) and other key treaties. However, the U.S. government could -- and should -- do much more.

On Wednesday, December 16, the Senate Subcommittee on Human Rights and the Law will hold a hearing on ways the U.S. can improve its compliance with international accords. In a submission to that hearing, Just Detention International urges the U.S. government to, among other things, sign the Optional Protocol to the Convention Against Torture (OPCAT), which would vastly improve the external oversight of U.S. prisons, jails, and other types of detention facilities.

Please click here to read JDI's submission.