Medico Moral Torture - A Philosophical Approach to an Undefined Option (original) (raw)

Torture: A Crime against Humanity

The term torture is a generic concept and can be defined, debated and deliberated under various conditions, in diverse contexts and claims. There is no consensus among the scholars, practitioners about the meaning of the term. It has been used as an investigative technique inflicted on a third person for the purpose of extracting information or confession. According to the United Nations Convention on 10 December 1984, Torture means any kind of act which causes severe pain or sufferings whether physical or mental and is intentionally inflicted on a person for such purposes obtaining information or a confession. This definition does not include " pain or suffering arising only from inherent in or incidental to lawful sanctions. Torture has been used less against citizens, however, more often against the people who are not the members of society like slaves, foreigners, prisoners of war and members of racial, ethnic and religious outsider groups. However, in the twentieth century, the rises of liberal democratic states have caused a decrease in the practice of state torture against citizens. Increase in torture can be attributed to three developments in the Twentieth century. This paper highlights the use of torture in a democratic country like India.

Is Torture Ever Morally Justifiable?

International Journal of Applied Philosophy

In this paper I argue that torture is morally justified in some extreme emergencies. However, I also argue that notwithstanding the moral permissibility of torture in some extreme emergencies, torture ought not to be legalised or otherwise institutionalised.

Torture and Legitimacy

Peace Review, 2006

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The Meaning of Torture

Polity, 2010

Despite being the subject of much recent scholarly work, torture remains an ambiguous concept. As recent legal arguments have made clear, such vagueness has important and immediate political consequences. This article makes a number of contributions towards resolving this ambiguity. First, it argues that the distinction between physical and psychological abuse is unwarranted. Second, it puts forward a logical basis for the distinction between torture and legally permissible punishments like incarceration. Third, it distinguishes between torture and related concepts like cruelty or sadism by stressing the instrumentality of torture. Ultimately, torture is defined as the systematic and deliberate infliction of severe pain or suffering on a person over whom the actor has physical control, in order to induce a behavioral response from that person.