Reply #56: The United Nations on Ritual Abuse-Torture

[Project_Willow]

From the 48th Commission on the Status of Women, United Nations March, 2004

An Emerging Human Rights Issue and Newly Recognized Form of Torture by "Non-state Actors" for the United Nations (UN)


We recommend ritual abuse-torture be identified as an emerging human rights violation; that ritual abuse-torture be recognized as a newly acknowledged form of torture that is inflicted by non-state actors. From our work and research, ritual abuse-torture is inflicted upon both girls and boys as young as infancy, and women. It involves planned and organized family and group rituals, abuse and torture as well as "off-street" in home, regional, national and transnational trafficking and sexualized exploitation and modern day slavery. Ritual abuse-torture has the capacity to destroy the personality of the infant, toddler, child, youth or adult victim.

http://www.ritualabusetorture.org/un.htm