Two-thirds of torture victims supported by UN Fund are migrants and refugees

GENEVA (26 April 2017) – Two-thirds of the nearly 50,000 victims of torture supported every year by the UN Voluntary Fund for Victims of Torture are migrants and refugees, according to the Fund’s Chairperson, Gaby Oré Aguilar.

"This shocking figure highlights the need for specialised and rapid responses to protect and promote the human rights of people on the move,” said Oré Aguilar. Her comments came ahead of a public event, entitled “A Victim’s Journey: Redress and Rehabilitation for Torture Victims in Migration”, organised by the Fund on 28 April 2017.

The event, was opened by Kate Gilmore, Deputy UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, on 28 April in Salle VIII at Palais des Nations, Geneva. During the event, experts - who include a torture survivor, medical doctors, psychiatrists and lawyers working for organisations supported by the Fund – discussed the link between torture and migration, as well as the most effective ways to respond to the needs of torture victims in the context of migration. They also showcased concrete projects, from different contexts and regions, focused on helping victims of torture in migration to receive medical, legal, and psycho-social support.

In advance of the meeting, civil society representatives supported by the Fund stressed the extreme vulnerability of torture victims in migration and called for immediate action.

The event was chaired by Ms. Gaby Ore Aguilar, Chairperson of the UN Voluntary Fund for Victims of Torture .

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