No torture

Liberty: The Overseas Operations Bill is bad news for soldiers and civilians alike

Posted on 23 Sep 2020

Liberty has warned the Overseas Operation Bill would put a time limit on justice by decriminalising torture after 5 years

Liberty has called on the Government to scrap the Overseas Operations Bill, which is being debated in Parliament today (23 September) for its second reading.

Nadia O’Mara, Liberty policy and campaigns officer, said:

“This Bill is bad news for soldiers and civilians alike. It would put a time limit on justice by decriminalising torture after 5 years. This is an insult to our armed forces which would harm their reputation on the world stage. And it would stop victims – whose trauma has no time limit – from getting justice. It’s also a distraction to hide long running MoD failures to properly investigate allegations of wrong-doing.

“If this Bill is allowed to go ahead it will not only water down our human rights laws – it would open the door to vital protections being chipped away until they have been erased in all but name. If the Government is serious about being a global leader in human rights then it must listen to these concerns and scrap the Bill. No one is above the law – especially not those who hold the reins of power, whether that’s the Government or the Armed Forces.”

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