The UN Subcommittee on Prevention of Torture and other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (SPT) hailed the pronouncement by the Supreme Court of Brazil to overturn a presidential decree that would have pulled apart the country’s torture prevention mechanism.

“We welcome this unanimous decision by the Supreme Federal Court of Brazil that prevents the dismantling of the national torture prevention mechanism of the country,” said Suzanne Jabbour, Chair of the SPT

In a hot undisputed decision, the Supreme Federal Court of Brazil ruled that the presidential declaration approved in 2019 is unconstitutional. Under the contentious decree, the Brazilian government severely reduced the financial and secretarial support to the Mecanismo Nacional de Prevenção e Combate à Torture (MNPCT), the country’s torture prevention watchdog; and members of the MNPCT would no longer be paid and would have to work on a voluntary basis.

The directive of the MNPCT requires its members to be accessible throughout the year to travel across the country to examine prisons, detention facilities and other places where people are deprived of their liberty. The Supreme Court considered that the MNPCT members could not carry out their mandate with full commitment without payment, as they would need to earn a living from another paid activity.

United Nations Human Rights, Office of the High Commissioner.