Dear Special Rapporteur Edwards.
DIGNITY – the Danish Institute against Torture wishes our most heartfelt congratulations on the appointment of your mandate, and in particular for making history as the first woman called to the role of Special Rapporteur on torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment.
As one of world’s first anti-torture NGOs and specialized treatment centers for torture survivors, we cannot stress enough the timeliness of bringing your deep and multifarious expertise to the role of Special Rapporteur.
At a time when the very notion of human rights as universal, inalienable, indivisible and inter-related is being challenged, your studied and steadied hand will undoubtedly prove invaluable for governments, the United Nations, civil society, and most importantly, survivors.
We at DIGNITY are particularly buoyed by your substantial efforts in ensuring the anti-torture agenda is seen though a gender lens, as well as your track record of giving voice to people on the move and others at higher risk of torture and ill-treatment.
For decades, DIGNITY has been a respected research organization on the causes and consequences and torture as well as most effective ways of ensuring prevention and rehabilitation. As you begin your role as Special Rapporteur, we look forward to working with you to ensure that survivors have access to redress and rehabilitation and perpetrators are brought to account.
To this end, DIGNITY would like to extend an open invitation to our headquarters in Copenhagen to explore and collaborate on areas of joint focus.
With sincerity, DIGNITY wishes you the best in what will surely be, and already is, a historic tenure as Special Rapporteur.
Therese Rytter
Legal Director
DIGNITY – Danish Institute against Torture
