Protocol on medico-legal documentation of solitary confinement

This Protocol originates from a joint project regarding documentation of psychological torture initiated by the Public Committee against Torture in Israel (PCATI), REDRESS and DIGNITY - Danish Institute Against Torture (DIGNITY) in 2015 after the Copenhagen Conference on Psychologi-cal Torture. The project is a vehicle to estab-lish a common understanding between health and legal professions as to how to best ensure the most accurate documentation of torture.The aim of the Protocol is to improve docu-mentation of solitary confinement and therefore to clarify the facts of the case so that stron-ger legal claims can subsequently be submitted to local and international complaints mecha-nisms. The Protocol has been developed based on a methodology involving a compilation and review of legal and health knowledge on soli-tary confinement and discussions among the authors and in a group of international experts.

This Protocol is cognisant of the significance of the specific social, cultural and political contexts in which solitary confinement is used. We hope that this Protocol will assist in the discussions between the various stakeholders and provide guidance on what can be documented and how to doc-ument torture.