Amnesty: Torture in Spain 'Widespread'
Pastor Dale Morgan
Amnesty: Torture in Spain 'Widespread'*
Friday November 23, 2007 2:16 AM
By CIARAN GILES
Associated Press Writer
MADRID, Spain (AP) - A human rights group accused Spain's government
Thursday of turning a blind eye to what it called the ``widespread and
persistent'' torture and abuse of people held in custody.
Amnesty International also called for closed-circuit television cameras
in police stations and an independent body to look into suspected cases
of torture.
``Up to now, the official attitude, from ministries to prosecutors and
judges, is that there are only isolated cases. Our investigations show
this is not so,'' said Esteban Beltran, the director of Amnesty's branch
in Spain.
There have been allegations in the past of torture and mistreatment by
Spanish police toward jailed members of armed Basque separatist group
ETA, but London-based Amnesty said abuse occurs with all types of suspects.
``In Spain, torture and mistreatment of detained people by officers
responsible for making sure the law is obeyed is a widespread and
persistent practice,'' Amnesty said.
A senior Interior Ministry official, speaking on customary condition of
anonymity, rejected Amnesty's claims that torture and abuse was common.
The official said that with some 150,000 police officers it was only
logical that there should be some ``isolated'' cases.
The report referred to 15 sample cases, most involving beatings by
police and threats of further violence to the victims.
The report said one man was arrested by police in the northeastern city
of Lleida in 2003 and confessed to false charges of burning an automated
teller machine after being allegedly made to stand or kneel without
support for hours.