International Day in Support of Victims of Torture

Date:

Thu, 06/25/2015 - 10:30 AM

Location:

H-137 U.S. Capitol Building

Announcement

In recognition of the International Day in Support of Victims of Torture, please join the Tom Lantos Human Rights Commission for a briefing featuring testimonies from torture survivors.

This panel will provide personal testimonies by torture survivors from Cameroon and Ethiopia. The State Department's 2013 Human Rights Report and the UN Committee Against Torture's country reports document egregious human rights violations in both countries, from torture and abuse by police and prison officials to imprisonment of students and journalists and high numbers of deaths in custody. The panelists will discuss their own experiences in the broader context of human rights violations in their respective countries, and offer recommendations on steps the U.S. Congress can take to improve human rights and eliminate torture in these countries and elsewhere. The discussion will be moderated by staff of the Torture Abolition and Survivors Support Coalition (TASSC) International of Washington, D.C., an organization that supports torture survivors in the Washington metropolitan area by providing social services and advocacy training.

The briefing is open to Members, staff and the public. If you have any questions please contact Shad Klein (for Rep. McGovern) at 202-225-3599 or Shadman.Klein@mail.house.gov. or Carson Middleton (for Rep. Pitts) at 202-225-2411 or Carson.Middleton@mail.house.gov.

Hosted by:

James P. McGovern
Member of Congress
Co-Chair, TLHRC

Joseph R. Pitts
Member of Congress
Co-Chair, TLHRC

Witnesses

Opening Remarks

Rep. James P. McGovern, Co-Chair, TLHRC
Written remarks

Panelists

Feyera Sobokssa, Ethiopia
Written statement
Alene Tewodajj, Ethiopia
HRH Forchenmbin Charles, Cameroon
Written statement

Moderator

Andrea Barron, Torture Abolition and Survivors Support Coalition (TASSC)

Bios

Accessibility

The Commission seeks to make its events, meetings and hearings accessible to persons with disabilities.

If you are in need of special accommodations, please call (202) 225-3599 at least four business days in advance.

Questions with regard to special accommodations in general (including availability of Commission materials in alternative formats and assistive listening devices, sign language interpretation, etc.) may be directed to the Commission.