Yet torture is inflicted on men, women and children in well over half the countries of the world. Torture is still used to extract confessions, to interrogate, to punish or to intimidate. In police stataions and prison cells, on city streets and in remote villages, torturers continue to inflict physical agony and mental anguish. The victims of torture are not just the people in the hands of the torturers. Friends, families and the wider community all suffer.
Torture even damages and distorts the hopes of future generations.
Torture is neither inevitable nor natural. There is no shortage of information on how to stop it. But torture will not end unless the world's political leaders have the will to end it. Our campaign aims to increase the pressure on those with power to stop torture. Our concerted action can make a difference Amnesty International calls on all world leaders to make a public committment that they will take steps to stop torture.