Stationary position torture

A variety of tortures involve placing people in a fixed position and forcing them to remain there. Some victims are hung, straining joints, muscles, and tendons. Victims are hung by their hands, wrists and ankles for minutes or hours at a time. They are tied to a chair and hung upside down. A method call the Parrot's Perch, Pau de Arara, the Roast Chicken, the Swing or the Jack in which the victim is tied into a crouching position, with the arms hugging the knees, a pole being then passed through the narrow gap behind the bent knees and in front of the elbows. The ends of the pole is then rested on two desks or trestles. The victims hangs head down and the tortures can beat him, use electrical prods or other instruments. Some victims are tied in positions which are uncomfortable, cuts off circulation and strains muscles, tendons and joints. The use of arm or leg irons for prolonged periods can lead to disability. They are tied in contorted positions. Victims are made to stand, occasionally in awkward positions, or squat in one position for hours or even days. In Feto, the victim is forced to remain for hours in a foetal position. In the Guardia, the victim is placed upright in a box with holes to enable him to breath. In Secadera, the victim is wrapped in a plastic sheet and placed in a metal cylinder. A technique called the Chancho is where prisoners lie parallel with the floor supported only by the head and the tips of their toes – if they fall or move they are beaten. Some are forced to hold heavy weights above their heads. Prisoners are forced to sit straddling iron or wooden bars which cut cruelly into the groin. Detainees are sometimes locked into cages with several others so that only a few can lay down and the rest must remain standing, this can last up to months at a time.

Torture stationary position has been reported in the following countries:

[Africa]

Benin, Congo, Djibouti, Egypt, Ethiopia, Mauritania, Morocco, Somalia, South Africa, Tunisia

[America]

Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Canada, Chile, Colombia, Haiti, Paraguay, Peru, Suriname, Uruguay

[Asia]

Bangladesh, India, Iraq, Israel, Korea Rep, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Syrian AR, Taiwan (Rep of China)

[Europe]

Turkey, UK