4. That consequent to his incarceration, he suffered severe physical injuries and
psychological trauma resultant from the torture
5. That he received treatment for physical injuries and psychological trauma from
Parirenyatwa, Avenues and Dandaro Hospital and clinics in Zimbabwe
6. He submitted medical evidence to support these allegations
7. He further alleged that when he fled to South Africa, he was still suffering from
physical injuries, severe depression, nightmares, temporary impotence so much
so that he had to receive further treatment and counseling for trauma at the Centre
for Studies of Violence and Reconciliation.
8. The Respondent State did not deny or argue this point, as their representatives
conceded that they could not say what kind of torture the victim suffered in police
custody, and could not deny that it in fact occurred. See Gabriel Shumba vs
Zimbabwe, No 288/04.
56. The Commission held that the Respondent State had violated the right of the
Victim not to be tortured and ill-treated as recognized in Article 5 of the African
Charter. While the Commission declared a holistic violation of torture but a fine
analysis of the above action will reveal a mixture of physical and contactless
actions which can be classified as physical or mental torture. Obviously actions
1&2 are characteristic of physical torture while action 3 falls within the category
of mental torture.
57. The United Nations Committee Against Torture
This Committee is the UN specialised mechanism with the role of monitoring and
supervising the implementation by States parties of their obligations under the
treaty and also empowered to deliberate on allegations of human rights in the UN
Member States. It found against the State of Bosnia and Herzegovina that rape
and other acts of sexual violence constitute torture under the Convention against
Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (the
Convention), and ordered the State to pay “fair and adequate compensation” and
provide free medical and psychological care to the victim. See Committee Against
Torture, Mrs. A v. Bosnia and Herzegovina, Communication No. 854/2017,UN
Doc. CAT/C/67/D/854/2017.
58. The Inter-American Court on Human Rights.
a) In addressing the component of torture, the Court opined in the case of
Maritza Urrutia V Guatamela that:
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