-As Calls Heighten for Its Enactment
Monrovia: Eighteen years after Liberia ratified the United Nations Convention Against Torture (UNCAT) and its Optional Protocol (OPCAT), the country continues to lack comprehensive domestic legislation to criminalize and prevent torture. While Article 21(e) of Liberia’s 1986 Constitution explicitly prohibits torture, the absence of implementing legislation has created a dangerous legal vacuum that enables ongoing abuses within detention centers and law enforcement agencies.
The proposed National Anti-Torture Act of 2011, which has languished in legislative limbo for over a decade, would finally bring Liberia into compliance with its international obligations. This critical legislation would not only define and criminalize torture but also establish mechanisms for prevention, accountability, and victim rehabilitation. The continued failure to enact this law leaves both detainees and law enforcement officers vulnerable – the former unprotected against abuse, and the latter without clear guidelines on prohibited conduct.
Liberia’s constitutional prohibition against torture remains largely symbolic without implementing legislation. The draft Anti-Torture Act would transform this principle into enforceable law by clearly defining torture as any act intentionally inflicting severe physical or mental pain or suffering, committed by or with the consent of public officials. It establishes felony-level penalties, including life imprisonment for the most severe cases, and crucially eliminates common justifications such as following superior orders or emergency situations.
International Commitments Demand Action
As a state party to both UNCAT and OPCAT, Liberia has binding obligations to prevent torture, investigate allegations, and provide redress to victims. The current legal framework fails to meet these requirements. The proposed law would establish a National Prevention Mechanism (NPM) – an independent oversight body empowered to conduct unannounced inspections of detention facilities, interview detainees confidentially, and recommend systemic reforms. This body would operate with full autonomy, in line with Article 17 of OPCAT.
**Healing the Wounds of the Past and Present**
Perhaps most importantly, the legislation includes groundbreaking provisions for victim rehabilitation and reparations. Chapter VII of the bill guarantees survivors access to comprehensive medical, psychological, social, and legal support through state-funded programs implemented in partnership with civil society organizations. It also provides for legal redress through judicial and administrative channels and extends protections to asylum seekers fleeing torture abroad.
**A Test of Liberia’s Commitment to Human Rights**
The continued delay in passing this legislation raises serious questions about Liberia’s dedication to human rights principles. While the country was among the first African nations to ratify these international instruments, the lack of domestic implementation undermines its standing on the global stage. Parliament now faces a critical choice: maintain the status quo that enables abuse or take decisive action to protect human dignity.
Human rights organizations and international partners urge Liberia’s legislature to Immediately table and pass the National Anti-Torture Act of 2011 without further delay, allocate sufficient funding for victim rehabilitation programs and the operationalization of the NPM, mandate human rights training for all security personnel and prison officials and establish monitoring systems to ensure full implementation of the law.
