As delivered by Acting Political Counselor Jennifer Bosworth
to the Permanent Council, Vienna
July 3, 2014
Thirty years ago, on June 26, 1984, the United Nations General Assembly adopted the Convention Against Torture. Three years later, also on June 26, the Convention entered into effect, memorializing the international community’s condemnation of this practice.
The United States reaffirms its solemn commitment to the Convention and its obligations under it. We honor those who have faced the horrors of torture, remember those who have lost their lives in the face of it, and renew our pledge to the struggle against torture and other cruel, inhumane or degrading treatment or punishment throughout the world. To the governments, civil society organizations, survivors, and others working worldwide to combat torture’s horrors, we share our gratitude for your efforts and assurance of our lasting partnership. The United States will continue to strive with you to achieve the Convention’s noble aspirations, so that we may all come to live in a world without torture.
Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
