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Torture degrades us all: forum

26 August 2005, 11:25AM

Sunday June 26 is the United Nations International Day in Support of the Victims of Torture. The people of Sydney will have the chance to hear first-hand arguments against the use of torture in a forum drawing on the work of NSW Service for the Treatment and Rehabilitation of Torture and Trauma Survivors (STARTTS).

The forum is organised by Amnesty International Australia and the Friends of STARTTS in support of a world without torture, and will be held in the Coles Theatre at the Powerhouse Museum from 2pm on Sunday June 26. Visitors will be able to meet STARTTS staff and some of the people they have helped.

The theme is "Torture Degrades Us All" and Joanna Savill, author and TV presenter, will be opening the forum. Guest speakers include:

  • Professor Raimond Gaita, Professor of Moral Philosophy at King's College London
  • Dr Ben Saul, Lecturer at the Faculty of Law, UNSW; Director of the Bill of Rights Project at the Gilbert + Tobin Centre for Public Law; and an associate of the Australian Human Rights Centre, and
  • Jamila Araste, refugee and torture survivor

Australia currently accepts 13,000 refugees a year, over 40% of who settle in NSW, many of them survivors of torture.

Last year STARTTS counselled over 2700 survivors at its Carramar, Auburn and Liverpool facilities and it is anticipated this figure will continue to rise over the next few years with refugee clients arriving from Africa, Iraq and Afghanistan.

"Torture is practised in more than 100 countries worldwide and is used by governments and armed opposition groups as a means of terrorising their people and maintaining populations in the grip of fear. In effect, torture is used as a tool of social control," said STARTTS Executive Director, Mr Jorge Aroche.

The community is invited to come along and support this work and learn more about the experiences of refugee torture survivors.

By joining Friends of STARTTS, which is a non-profit group of volunteers, people can help STARTTS assist survivors of torture and trauma through its volunteer program, its campaigns and by attending STARTTS events.

To arrange media interviews contact: Peter Russell on 0405 151 045

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