Centre for Forensic and Legal Medicine, University of Dundee, Dundee, Scotland, UK.
Forensic Sci Int. 2011 May 20;208(1-3):143-8. doi: 10.1016/j.forsciint.2010.11.019. Epub 2010 Dec 21.
International fact-finding missions directed towards the exposure of possible ill-treatment of persons deprived of their liberty have become increasingly common within the framework of international treaties. Such country visits occur with the consent and co-operation of government, provide unfettered access to all places of detention and allow private interviews with detainees. The Committee for the Prevention of Torture of the Council of Europe, the United Nations Special Rapporteur on Torture, and the United Nations Subcommittee on Prevention of Torture all engage in such missions, and make use of a medical professional as part of the investigative team. The medical contribution to fact finding missions assessing ill-treatment of detainees includes an assessment of the conditions of detention, the regime and the medical services. Custody doctors and their records can be a rich source of information about physical ill-treatment. The interview and examination of detainees often occurs in circumstances which are far from ideal. The safety and wellbeing of the detainees, including protection from reprisals, is always paramount. A medical examination may disclose injuries corroborative of specific allegations. More often, a medical history of the effects of ill treatment and the description of resolved transient injuries provides corroboration, and also forms part of assessing the overall credibility of the detainee. Equally important is the consistency of the allegation with other evidence obtained from a wide variety of sources including the inspection of the place of alleged ill-treatment. The evolved working methods draw on the basic principles underlying police criminal investigations and crime scene examinations as well as forensic medicine. A forensic medical expert can be a useful part of the team in such international fact finding missions.
国际实况调查团旨在揭露被剥夺自由者可能遭受的虐待，这种调查团在国际条约框架内越来越常见。这种国家访问是在政府同意与合作的情况下进行的，允许调查团不受限制地进入所有拘留场所，并允许与被拘留者进行私人访谈。欧洲理事会预防酷刑委员会、联合国酷刑问题特别报告员和联合国防止酷刑小组委员会都进行这种访问，并利用一名医学专业人员作为调查组成员。医学专业人员在评估被拘留者遭受虐待的实况调查团中做出的贡献包括对拘留条件、制度和医疗服务的评估。拘留医生及其记录可以为身体虐待提供丰富的信息来源。对被拘留者的访谈和检查通常在远非理想的情况下进行。被拘留者的安全和福祉，包括免受报复，始终是最重要的。医学检查可能会发现与具体指控相符的伤害。更常见的是，虐待造成的影响的病史和已解决的短暂性伤害的描述提供了佐证，并也构成评估被拘留者整体可信度的一部分。同样重要的是，指控与从包括对据称虐待发生地的检查在内的各种来源获得的其他证据之间的一致性。经过改进的工作方法借鉴了警察刑事调查和犯罪现场检查以及法医学的基本原则。法医专家可以成为这种国际实况调查团中有用的团队成员。
