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How Torture Became Part of Health Law
1Boston University School of Public Health.
American Journal of Law & Medicine
|March 24, 2025
Summary
The Center for Health Law, Ethics, and Human Rights (CLER) has long opposed torture and cruel treatment. CLER advocates for human rights, providing care for torture survivors and opposing unethical medical and legal practices.
Area of Science:
- Medical Ethics
- Human Rights Law
- Public Health
Background:
- The Center for Health Law, Ethics, and Human Rights (CLER) has over 25 years of experience in torture treatment, advocacy, and education.
- The Boston Center for Refugee Health and Human Rights (BCRHHR) was established to offer comprehensive care to asylum seekers who have endured government-sanctioned torture.
- Healing for survivors involves seeking justice, with clinicians collaborating with immigration attorneys to document evidence of torture for asylum claims.
Purpose of the Study:
- To examine the role of medical and legal professionals in rationalizing and sanitizing torture following the September 11 attacks.
- To highlight CLER's leadership in opposing torture, cruel, inhumane, and degrading treatment, including specific practices like force-feeding and the Rendition, Detention, and Interrogation (RDI) program.
- To analyze the impact of U.S. torture programs on detainees and inform legal proceedings.
Main Methods:
- Scholarly examination of medical and legal involvement with government agencies in torture.
- Engagement with military officials and international experts to address torture practices.
- Evaluation of the effects of torture programs on detainees and testimony in legal hearings.
Main Results:
- CLER identified and opposed the use of medical and legal professionals to justify and legitimize torture and cruel treatment.
- The study documented specific U.S. practices, such as the RDI program and force-feeding, which constitute torture.
- CLER's work involved evaluating the detrimental effects of these programs on individuals and contributing to legal accountability.
Conclusions:
- CLER emphasizes the ethical and legal parallels between contemporary torture and historical atrocities, referencing the Nuremberg Doctors' Trial.
- The center advocates for adherence to International Human Rights Law in all medical and legal contexts.
- CLER continues to champion the global importance of human rights and the prohibition of torture.
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