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V. PHYSICAL EVIDENCE OF TORTURE AND ILL-TREATMENT ISTANBUL PROTOCOL

on a toe of the right foot and on the genital region, skin, nosebleeds, bleeding from the ears, congestion
there will be pain, muscle contraction and cramps in of the face, infections in the mouth and acute or
the right thigh and calf muscles. Excruciating pain chronic respiratory problems. Petrol in the plastic
will be felt in the genital region. Since all muscles bag may cause burns to the facial skin. Forcible
along the route of the electric current are tetanically immersion of the head in water, often contaminated
contracted, dislocation of the shoulder, and lumbar with urine, faeces, vomit or other contaminants, may
and cervical radiculopathies may be observed when result in near drowning or drowning. Aspiration of
the current is moderately high. However, the type, time the water into the lungs may lead to pneumonia.
of application, current and voltage of the energy used This form of torture is called “wet submarino”.
cannot be determined with certainty upon physical
examination of the victim. Torturers often use water 453. Another form of asphyxia, waterboarding, involves
or gels in order to increase the efficiency of the torture, pouring water onto a cloth held over the victim’s
expand the entrance point of the electric current on nose and mouth, causing the sensation of, or actual,
the body and prevent detectable electric burns. Trace drowning. The victim is lying face-up, either horizontal
electrical burns can be a reddish-brown circular or with the feet higher than the head. In hanging or
lesion a few millimetres in diameter, usually without in other ligature asphyxiation, patterned abrasions
inflammation, which may result in a hyperpigmented or contusions can often be found on the neck. The
scar. Skin surfaces must be carefully examined hyoid bone and laryngeal cartilage may be fractured
because the lesions are not often easily discernible. by partial strangulation or from blows to the neck.
Hypersalivation may be reported, but often history is
limited due to loss of consciousness during the torture. 454. Any of these forms of asphyxia may cause loss of
consciousness due to insufficient oxygen supply
6. Dental torture to the brain and the consequences of this type of
loss of consciousness may be similar to that from
451. Dental torture may be in the form of breaking blunt trauma head injury, in terms of loss of short
or extracting teeth or through application of or long-term memory or other cognitive deficits.
electrical current to the teeth. It may result in
a loss or breaking of the teeth, swelling of the 8. Sexual torture, including rape 435
gums, bleeding, pain, gingivitis, stomatitis,
mandibular fractures or loss of fillings from teeth. 455. Sexual torture begins with forced nudity, which
Temporomandibular joint syndrome will produce in many countries is a constant factor in torture
pain in the temporomandibular joint, limitation situations. An individual is never as vulnerable
of jaw movement and, in some cases, subluxation as when naked and helpless. Nudity enhances the
of this joint due to muscle spasms occurring as a psychological terror of every aspect of torture, as
result of the electrical current or blows to the face. there is always the threat of potential sexual torture
or ill-treatment, including rape. Furthermore, verbal
7. Asphyxiation sexual threats, verbal abuse and mocking are also part
of sexual torture, as they enhance the humiliation and
452. Near asphyxiation by suffocation is an increasingly its degrading aspects. Sexual torture includes forced
common method of torture. It usually leaves no nudity, sexual assault by touching intimate parts of
mark and recuperation is rapid. This method of the body, digital penetration, forced masturbation,
torture was so widely used in Latin America that forced insertion of an object into the vagina or anus,
its name in Spanish, submarino, has become part of oral rape, anal rape and vaginal rape, ejaculation
human rights vocabulary. Normal respiration might or urination onto the victim, sexual slavery, forced
be prevented through such methods as covering the pregnancy and enforced sterilization. A sexual
head with a plastic bag, closure of the mouth and torture experience is often a prolonged ordeal for
nose, pressure or ligature around the neck or forced the victim, in which many different traumatic events
aspiration of dust, cement, petrol, hot peppers etc. occur. While some victims are able to recount every
This is also known as “dry submarino”. Various moment of their ordeal, many are not and block out
complications might develop, such as petechiae of the certain parts of it that are too distressing to relate

435 For additional guidance on the investigation and documentation of sexual violence, see Ferro Ribeiro and van der Straten Ponthoz, International Protocol on the Documentation
and Investigation of Sexual Violence (see footnote 357).

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