Torture and Its Consequences
Current Treatment Approaches
Description:... Despite numerous international declarations and conventions prohibiting human rights violations, torture remains a major problem in many countries of the world. Progress on the humanitarian front has not been adequately paralleled by efforts in the scientific world to achieve a better understanding of the various forms of political repression and their effects on individuals, communities and societies. This book reveals in some detail the medical, psychiatric and psychological problems confronting survivors of torture, and reviews the various treatment approaches available to those involved in their care. Comparisons are made, where appropriate, with other violent acts or situations, by reference to the experience of treating prisoners of war, Holocaust survivors, and other survivors of violence in the military or civilian arenas. Contributions are drawn both from host countries treating refugees who have experienced torture and also from a number of countries where treatment and rehabilitation of torture survivors has taken place in a setting of continuing political repression. The importance of this work lies in its emphasis on a scientific approach to the problem of torture while also giving due consideration to its social and political dimensions. As a source of theoretical and practical information it is unrivalled, addressing the needs of all health workers helping survivors of torture, and reviewing issues in the sociology and psychobiology of organized violence that will command the attention of a much wider readership.
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