UCC Against Torture

Torture and cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment are contrary to our faith traditions and beliefs regarding the integrity of creation and fundamental dignity of the human being. As we observe Human Rights Day, take action to protect human rights and end torture.

Add your voice to the chorus calling on the U.S. to join the treaty and prevent torture everywhere.

When President Obama took office three years ago, one of his first actions was to sign an executive order banning the use of torture. Although this was an important step, the U.S. still must go further to become a leader in ending the use of torture anywhere in the world.

One important step is for the U.S. to sign and ratify the Optional Protocol to the Convention Against Torture (OPCAT). OPCAT is an international treaty that requires ratifying nations to set up mechanisms to ensure that torture does not occur, including allowing access to places of confinement by international inspection teams.

OPCAT has been ratified by 60 nations and 21 more have taken the initial step of signing. The U.S. is one of only a handful of countries that opposes. U.S. ratification of OPCAT at this time would signal our commitment to human rights and put renewed pressure on more nations to join in the movement to end torture everywhere.

More info.

Join the Treaty:
The U.S. Should Act to Prevent Torture Everywhere

Torture and cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment are contrary to our common religious belief in the fundamental dignity of each human being. We call upon the U.S. government, once a leader in the effort to end the use of torture, to reclaim that role by signing and ratifying the Optional Protocol to the Convention Against Torture (OPCAT).

One of the most important steps a nation can take to end torture and cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment is to provide independent oversight of the conditions in which people are detained. By creating mechanisms that can prevent torture, including international inspection teams, OPCAT builds upon the prohibition against torture contained in the Convention Against Torture, a treaty to which the U.S. is already a party and which is U.S. law. OPCAT requires each nation that ratifies the treaty to develop its own independent mechanism for monitoring detention facilities, including prisons and police stations.

We believe that if the U.S. joins OPCAT and provides robust oversight of its places of detention, it will be significantly more difficult for cases of torture and cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment to occur within the U.S. Ratifying OPCAT would also enhance our government’s effectiveness in urging other countries to end their use of torture.

As people of many faiths and creeds, we oppose torture. We call upon our government to do everything it can to prevent torture everywhere. We call upon the President to sign OPCAT, and we call upon the U.S. Senate to ratify it.

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Resources and more information from UCC partner organization the National Religious Campaign Against Torture:

Consider incorporating Human Rights Day into your Sunday service December 11^th. Download the bulletin insert or include a petition in the prayers of the people. For prayers you can use or adapt for your church, go to the National Religious Campaign Against Torture’s Christian prayers for Human Rights Day page.

OPCAT Background Information