Torture can have an immense impact on a person's physical and mental health. Human rights abuse and cases of torture and other ill-treatment have been documented in at least 141 countries (Amnesty International, n.d). Torture can occur in prisons in the country of origin or abroad, among societies experiencing war or conflict, or among those under state oppression (Mpande et al., 2013).

The UN Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment provides this commonly-used definition of torture:

“...any act by which severe pain or suffering, whether physical or mental, is intentionally inflicted on a person for such purposes as obtaining from him or a third person information or a confession, punishing him for an act he or a third person has committed or is suspected of having committed, or intimidating or coercing him or a third person, or for any reason based on discrimination of any kind, when such pain or suffering is inflicted by or at the instigation of or with the consent or acquiescence of a public official or other person acting in an official capacity. It does not include pain or suffering arising only from, inherent in or incidental to lawful sanctions.” (UN, 1984)

Torture can include many different acts, such as beating, burning, electric shocks, sleep deprivation, rape, mutilation, suffocation in water, mock execution, sensory deprivation and the forced observation of the torture of friends or family. No matter the method, torture takes a severe toll on survivors, their families and whole communities (UN, 1998; CCVT, n.d.).

The aim of torture is to humiliate victims and establish extreme power over them so they become powerless—in effect, dehumanizing the individual. This produces profound feelings of guilt, destruction of mental and psychological capabilities, and loss of dignity in victims (Vorbrüggen & Baer, 2007).

Torture victims can be almost any member of society—people from all social classes, age groups and sexual orientations. Although survivors of torture can be from immigrant or refugee populations, historically torture survivors have been more represented among refugees and asylum-seekers than other groups. In 2019, an estimated 30% of all refugees resettled in Canada were survivors of torture or violence (UNHCR, n.d.).

During refugee status determination hearings, refugee claimants who are victims of torture may find the proceedings particularly stressful, even when the discussion does not involve their experiences of torture. For this reason, the Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada recognizes, in its Training Manual on Victims of Torture, that the experience of torture will negatively affect an individual's ability to testify and that special measures should be taken during the questioning of these claimants (IRB, 2004).

Learn more at Amnesty International's Stop Torture initiative