Subscribe to one of our news e-mail lists . While evidence of torture around the world goes back many centuries, technology has turned a brutal ancient art into a modern-day science. Dr Duncan Forrest is a member of the London-based Medical Foundation for the Care of Victims of Torture, which sees 3,000 torture victims a year. Speaking at the launch of Amnesty International's 'Stamp Out Torture' global campaign on Wednesday, he said few people have a realistic concept of exactly what torture is or the many forms it can be delivered in.
Victims suffer bruises, internal bleeding, broken bones, lost teeth, ruptured organs and some die.
Other methods include submersion in water, stubbing of cigarettes on the body, being tied to the back of a car and being dragged behind it. In some cases, torture is now more high-tech with the manufacture, export and use of devices designed specifically for use on human beings. But aside from inflicting physical pain, Forrest says the greatest weapon at the disposal of the modern-day barbarian is psychological torture. You can destroy a person without laying a finger on him. He said sense depravation or the sounds and sights of others being tortured, especially children and other relatives, are commonly used.