Folter und ärztliche Verantwortung

In its original context, the Istanbul Protocol - vol. 2 of this series represents the first German edition - intended to serve as a set of internationally acknowledged guidelines for the effective documentation of allegations of torture with a strong view of preventing future maltreatment and facilitating the legal prosecution of suspected perpetrators. Within the context of European and German-speaking countries, where actual incidents of torture seem rather unlikely, one of the main purposes of the Istanbul Protocol is its application within asylum procedures. Confirmation of the traumatic experience of a refugee could be decisive for him/her obtaining asylum status. The third volume of the series Medicine and Human Rights explores different aspects of medical and psychological assessment of torture victims within asylum procedures. It focuses on the victims and the problems created by the different logics underlying legal procedures and psychological evaluations. Additional contributions shed light on the complicity of physicians in torture and discuss comprehensively why torture or maltreatment can never be a legal part of a democratic state. The annex contains the most important documents and declarations regarding torture as well as a transcript of a documentary about the Istanbul Protocol. German text.