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UN experts warn of grave risks to detainees as Russia moves to withdraw from European torture-prevention mechanism

Press releases
Special Procedures

03 September 2025

GENEVA -- Two UN Special Rapporteurs today sharply criticised the Russian Federation for announcing plans to end its cooperation with the European Committee on the Prevention of Torture.

"External visiting bodies such as the European Committee are a basic safeguard to protect against abuses in prisons and other places where people are confined," said Alice Jill Edwards, the Special Rapporteur on Torture and Mariana Katzarova, the Special Rapporteur on human rights in the Russian Federation. "Russia's decision raises red flags about what is going on behind bars."

The experts have previously raised consistent and serious concerns regarding the treatment of persons deprived of their liberty in the Russian Federation. They have also documented widespread and systematic torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading punishment against Ukrainian civilians and prisoners of war by Russian forces and associated authorities.

"The ongoing denial of access to international observers, including our own mandates, and now this latest move by Russia to close the door to such inspections entirely, raises grave concerns about the treatment of detainees in custody," the experts said. "Russia's extensive prison system and other locations in occupied territory of Ukraine have become black holes."

"We remind all Russian authorities that despite withdrawal from this mechanism, the country's obligations to prevent and protect those in detention remain unchanged as a matter of international law. Torture is absolutely prohibited in all circumstances. All violations must be investigated and perpetrators prosecuted and punished."

The Russian government announced plans to withdraw from the European Convention for the Prevention of Torture and Other Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment, which was ratified by Moscow in 1998. As of September 2022, Russia is also no longer party to the European Convention on Human Rights, also ending oversight of torture violations by the Court.

*The experts:

• Alice Jill Edwards, Special Rapporteur on Torture and other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment.
• Mariana Katzarova, Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the Russian Federation.

Special Rapporteurs/Independent Experts/Working Groups are independent human rights experts appointed by the United Nations Human Rights Council. Together, these experts are referred to as the Special Procedures of the Human Rights Council. Special Procedures experts work on a voluntary basis; they are not UN staff and do not receive a salary for their work. While the UN Human Rights office acts as the secretariat for Special Procedures, the experts serve in their individual capacity and are independent from any government or organization, including OHCHR and the UN. Any views or opinions presented are solely those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of the UN or OHCHR.

Country-specific observations and recommendations by the UN human rights mechanisms, including the special procedures, the treaty bodies and the Universal Periodic Review, can be found on the Universal Human Rights Index https://uhri.ohchr.org/en/