A Comparative Analysis of Mental and Psychological Suffering as Torture, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment Under International Human Rights Treaty Law

After years of relative silence, psychological torture has recently attracted wide attention. In this article, the author offers a comparative study of the way in which the different major human rights systems deal with this phenomenon. As each case has its own characteristics, factors such as the nature, purpose and severity of the treatment become important in making an assessment. The author deals with the approach of the Human Rights Committee, the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights and the European Court of Human Rights and discusses the different factors that determine whether the treatment is to be classified as torture or as inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment.