Pharmacological torture
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Pharmacological torture is the use of psychotropic or other drugs to punish or extract information from a person.[1] The aim is to force compliance by causing distress, which could be in the form of pain, anxiety, psychological disturbance, immobilization, or disorientation.[1]
One form of this torture involves forcibly injecting a person with addictive drugs in order to induce physical dependence. The drug is then withdrawn, and, once the person is in withdrawal, the interrogation is started. If the person complies with the torturer's demands, the drug is reintroduced, relieving the person's withdrawal symptoms.[2]:73
Contents
Alleged use of pharmacological torture
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Brazil
According to some reports, various forms of pharmacological torture were used in Brazil during the 1970s, including the injection of alcohol into the tongue and scrotum; use of drugs to induce seizures; and use of muscle relaxants to minimize physical injury when giving victims electric shocks.[2][page needed]
Romania
In the 1960s, prisoners were allegedly given drugs to make them talk in their sleep.[2][page needed]
South Africa
In 2013, leaked video footage shot inside South Africa's Mangaung Prison showed a prisoner with no record of mental illness being forcibly injected, apparently with anti-psychotic drugs.[3] The Legal Resources Centre, a non-governmental organization, is representing 13 clients who allege they were forcibly injected with the drugs.[4]
Soviet Union
In the former Soviet Union, drugs were allegedly used as a form of punishment. Haloperidol, an antipsychotic medication, was a preferred agent. It was used to induce intense restlessness and Parkinson's-type symptoms.[2][page needed] Another antipsychotic medication, chlorpromazine, was also used to induce grogginess, sedation, and (in high doses) vegetative states. Other alleged uses of pharmacological torture included:
- Use of insulin shock therapy to render people comatose.[2][page needed]
- Administering Sulfazin to induce severe fevers.[2][page needed]
- Use of sodium amobarbital with LSD to cause loss of inhibition.[2][page needed]
Uruguay
In Uruguay, people have allegedly been paralyzed using curare derivatives.[2][page needed]
See also
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 "Pharmacological Torture" World Problems Online. Union of International Associations
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 2.5 2.6 2.7 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
