Anal Examinations in Cases of Alleged Homosexuality

Anal examinations are forcibly conducted in many countries where consensual anal intercourse is considered a criminal act. They are conducted almost exclusively on males in an effort to “prove” that they are “homosexuals” despite the fact that anal intercourse is not a necessary determinant of “homosexual activity.” Forcibly conducted anal examinations are usually initiated at the request of law enforcement officials, the prosecutor, or the court and conducted in the absence of informed consent or in circumstances where individuals are not capable of giving genuine informed consent or where refusal to give consent would be interpreted as self-incrimination. This may be presumed to be the case when examinations are conducted on individuals in detention, subsequent to allegations of criminalised sexual acts by the authorities. The purpose of this medico-legal statement is to provide legal experts, adjudicators, health care professionals, and policymakers, among others, with an understanding of: 1) the validity of forcibly conducted anal examinations as medical and scientific evidence of consensual anal intercourse; 2) the likely physical and psychological consequences of forcibly conducted anal examinations; and 3) whether, based on these effects, forcibly conducted anal examination constitutes cruel, inhuman, or degrading treatment or torture

Statement on Virginity Testing: Independent Forensic Expert Group

Virginity examinations are practiced in many countries, and often forcibly, in a number of contexts, including in detention places; on women who allege rape; on women who are accused by authorities of prostitution; and as part of public or social policies to control sexuality. In other states, the practice is illegal. The purpose of this medico-legal statement is to provide legal experts, adjudicators, healthcare professionals, and policymakers, among others, with an understanding of the physical and psychological effects of forcibly conducting virginity examinations on females and to assess whether, based on these effects, forcibly conducted virginity examinations constitute cruel, inhuman, or degrading treatment or torture. This medico-legal statement also addresses the medical interpretation and relevance of such examinations and the ethical implications. This opinion considers an examination to be ‘forcibly conducted’ when it is “committed by force, or by threat of force or coercion, such as caused by fear of violence, duress, detention, psychological oppression or abuse of power, against such person incapable of giving genuine consent.”   For full details about the Independent Forensic Expert Group please visit http://www.irct.org/our-support/ medical-and-psychological-case-support/forensic-expertgroup.aspx

Diagnosis of torture after 32 years: Assessment of three alleged torture victims during the 1980 military coup in Turkey

Torture is a crime against humanity and it is frequently encountered in countries that have a history of military intervention such as Turkey. Torture still exists despite absolute prohibition by human rights and humanitarian law. More than 1 million people were tortured in Turkey since 1980 coup d'etat. Documentation of medical evidence is a prominent step for prevention of torture. Manual on the Effective Investigation and Documentation of Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (Istanbul Protocol) provides international standards for medical documentation of torture. A holistic approach to trauma stories together with physical and psychological findings has been the main frame of the Protocol. The aim of this study is to discuss physicians' responsibility for prevention of torture, and to emphasize the importance of holistic approach to the assessment of particularly chronic patients

Diagnosis of torture after 32 years: Assessment of three alleged torture victims during the 1980 military coup in Turkey

Torture is a crime against humanity and it is frequently encountered in countries that have a history of military intervention such as Turkey. Torture still exists despite absolute prohibition by human rights and humanitarian law. More than 1 million people were tortured in Turkey since 1980 coup d'etat. Documentation of medical evidence is a prominent step for prevention of torture. Manual on the Effective Investigation and Documentation of Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (Istanbul Protocol) provides international standards for medical documentation of torture. A holistic approach to trauma stories together with physical and psychological findings has been the main frame of the Protocol. The aim of this study is to discuss physicians' responsibility for prevention of torture, and to emphasize the importance of holistic approach to the assessment of particularly chronic patients

Demonstration Control Agents Evaluation of 64 Cases After Massive Use in Istanbul

An uncontrolled use of "demonstration control agents" commonly known as "teargas agents" has recently been a common practice in Turkey. One of the first massive uses of these agents had been during a meeting of the North Atlantic Council and NATO in 2004, in Istanbul. After the demonstrations, 64 patients were evaluated and treated by the Human Rights Foundation of Turkey. Their files have been reviewed retrospectively and were classified regarding age, sex, physical findings related of chemical agents, and other injuries

A significant diagnostic method in torture investigation: Bone scintigraphy

Torture appears to be a permanent feature in countries, which have experienced military coups or ruled by oppressive governments in the past, such as Turkey. The Human Rights Foundation of Turkey (HRFT) was established in 1990 to serve torture victims, mainly those who were the victims of the 1980 military regime. Since then the HRFT has been providing rehabilitation and documentation for torture survivors. Bone scintigraphy can be one of the diagnostic methods to reveal trauma, particularly after several years when it is challenging to find any physical or radiological evidence. The HRFT's Istanbul Branch referred 97 of their applicants for bone scintigraphy between 1992 and 2010. In this retrospective survey of 97 cases, 17 of them were female and 80 of them were male. Several aspects were evaluated, including working conditions, change of torture methods practiced in certain time periods, time since torture and duration of exposure to torture in comparison with findings of bone scintigraphies. The torture methods varied from beating to falanga, electric shock, suspension and several other types of torture within the period of practice, although beating was a common denominator among all. The findings were classified according to time since torture and duration of exposure to torture. More than half of the cases (59%) had a detectable bone lesion on bone scintigraphy, and the detectable bone lesion on scintigraphy increased significantly with the duration of exposure to torture, particularly among cases who had been subjected to torture for a longer period (8 days and more). Bone scintigraphy should be considered as a valuable non-invasive diagnostic method to assess and document long term torture practices and/or cases with no detectable marks upon physical examination. (C) 2013 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved

Problem of Pregnancy in Sexual Assaults

Sexual assault and rape have serious consequences regarding health and law with physical and psychological outcomes of the problem. Pregnancy after rape, potential delay of diagnosis, physical and psychological injuries that might ocur as a consequence necessitate a multidisciplinary work of the medicolegal and ethical aspects of the subject. A case of pregnancy after rape who was in the 20th week of gestation has been evaluated by the Departments of Forensic Medicine, Obstetrics and Gynecology and Physchiatry. Clinical aspects of this presented case with a diagnosis of "post traumatic stress disorder, major depression and epileptic psychosis" have been considered to support consistency of her pregnancy with alleged rape history. In the article, termination of pregnancy with respect to the amended Turkish Penal Code and other existing laws, principles of legal and medical approach by the specialists of the related branches of medicine to the cases of pregnancy after sexual assault and rape have been discussed. The well defined collaboration of clinicians with medicolegal experts in scope of clinical forensic medicine will guide any medical procedure for legitimization as well as to support judicial procedure by providing safeguards for collecting samples, and expected security of evidence needed