UN Torture Prevention Body To Visit New Zealand

GENEVA (10 September 2025) - The UN Subcommittee on Prevention of Torture (SPT) will conduct its second visit to New Zealand (Aotearoa in Māori), from 13 to 25 September, to assess the country’s measures to protect people deprived of liberty from torture and ill-treatment.

During the mission, the SPT delegation will visit prisons, police stations and other places where people are or may be deprived of their liberty. The delegation will meet with State officials, representatives of civil society, and UN agencies. It will also hold meetings and conduct joint visits with national preventive monitoring bodies, collectively known as the National Preventive Mechanism (NPM).

“We are keen to see the impact of developments in New Zealand since our last visit over a decade ago, and look forward to engaging with State authorities to ensure stronger and more efficient measures for the prevention of torture and ill-treatment, including enhancing the mandate, powers and operation of the Aotearoa NPM,” said Shujune Muhammad, who heads the SPT delegation.

“We are encouraged by the cooperation extended to us ahead of the visit and are optimistic that this reflects a commitment to constructive dialogue and ongoing collaboration during and after our visit,” she added.

The SPT is mandated to visit all States Parties to the Optional Protocol to the Convention against Torture (OPCAT), which New Zealand ratified in 2007. At the end of the visit, the SPT will present its confidential preliminary observations to the Government of New Zealand.

The SPT delegation will be composed of the following members: Aisha Shujune Muhammad, Head of Delegation (Maldives), Djordje Alempijevic (Serbia), Elīna Šteinerte, (Lativa), Victor Zaharia (Moldova), along with two Human Rights Officers from the SPT Secretariat.

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