An upcoming talk in Bath will be focussing on whether the frightening subject of torture can be prevented across the world.
This topical subject is to be discussed at BRLSI on Friday 11th October, in a lecture by Malcolm D Evans OBE. Professor Evans is an expert on torture prevention: he is the current Chair of the United Nations (UN) Subcommittee for the Prevention of Torture, and Professor of Public International Law at Bristol University.
The event at BRLSI is arranged, jointly, by the Bath group of Amnesty International (AI) and the Bristol-Bath branch of Freedom from Torture (FfT).
Doors open at 7.15pm for this lecture chaired by Cllr Sarah Bevan, Human Rights Champion for Bath & North East Somerset Council. Cllr Bevan’s family were among the millions murdered during the Holocaust of World War II.
“Many states ostensibly ban torture,” said Amnesty International Bath secretary Mark Froud, “yet many of those same states secretly continue to use it as a means to intimidate and punish their citizens.”
Freedom from Torture Bristol-Bath chair Linda Walz continued: “The effects of torture are profound and long-lasting, both psychologically and physically. Professor Evans will be discussing how prevention could be genuinely implemented in order to end this horrific practice.”
The event is free – but donations are welcome. Light refreshments will be available at the end, with an opportunity to learn more about the work of Amnesty International and Freedom from Torture.
Amnesty International was founded in 1961 to campaign for prisoners of conscience. The local Bath group was established in 1975, and is currently focussed on human rights violations in Burma and North Korea.
Freedom from Torture was founded in 1985 as the Medical Foundation for the Care of Victims of Torture. It grew out of the Amnesty International Medical Group. The local Bristol-Bath branch was formed in 2012. It hosted the stunning ‘Write to Life’ theatrical event at Bath Literature Festival in March 2013 and held a 150 mile Bath-London fund-raising bike ride two months later, in mid-May.
