Prevent Torture under Intl Law

3 Credits · Level: Graduate

Despite the absolute and non-derogable prohibition of torture under international law, torture persists in detention systems, armed conflicts, migration control, and national security settings. This interdisciplinary graduate seminar examines how the prohibition is defined, implemented, and contested across international legal regimes, institutions, and State practice. It introduces the principal normative and preventive frameworks and considers how they operate in contemporary contexts where the prohibition is most severely tested. The course combines legal analysis with institutional practice. Most sessions will pair a lecture on the relevant legal and institutional framework with guided discussion of assigned cases, reports, and policy materials. The course addresses prevention, investigation, accountability, and urgent protection, as well as emerging challenges such as technology-facilitated psychological abuse and torture-capable equipment. The final sessions move more directly into practice through the examination of State review and international protection mechanisms. An optional daytime visit to the headquarters of the Organization of American States will be offered toward the end of the course, providing participating students with an opportunity to engage with practitioners working in the field.