Recent Jurisprudence of the United Nations Committee against Torture and the International Protection of Refugees

Abstract

Over more than 25 years, the United Nations Committee against Torture, established under the 1984 United Nations Convention against Torture, has adopted a series of decisions on individual claims which may be considered relevant for the development and deepening of certain aspects of international and domestic law on the protection of refugees. There is an interesting cross-fertilisation between the application and interpretation of refugee law principles and norms and those related to the absolute prohibition of torture and ill treatment. Therefore, the precision and nuance developed by the Committee on concepts such as torture, ill treatment, non-refoulement, investigation of torture, or “substantive” risk of torture shed light and promote best practices by state authorities on questions such as the existence and proof of “well founded fear of persecution”, the limits of extradition, and the usefulness of diplomatic assurances in the field of refugee law. This article analyses some of the latest decisions and recommendations of the Committee and identifies their relevance to note its contribution to the protection objectives of refugee law.