Nora Sveaass re-elected to the UN Committee Against Torture

“Nora Sveaass has done an excellent job in the UN Committee Against Torture, and she has demonstrated a high level of integrity and strong personal commitment,” commented Foreign Minister Jonas Gahr Støre on hearing that the Norwegian psychologist has been re-elected to the UN Committee Against Torture. Given Ms Sveaas’ professional background and persistent focus on the situation of torture victims, she makes a valuable contribution to the quality and breadth of the Committee’s work,” Mr Støre added.

The UN Committee Against Torture (CAT) monitors States Parties’ implementation of the Convention Against Torture. The Committee is composed of 10 independent experts who examine States Parties’ reports on their implementation of the Convention at national level.  In addition, the Committee considers individual complaints against States Parties that have recognised the competence of the Committee to receive such complaints. The Convention Against Torture has 146 States Parties.

Nora Sveaass is currently the only Norwegian member of a UN treaty body. Ms Sveaass is Associate Professor of Psychology at the University of Oslo, and Head of the Norwegian Psychological Association’s Human Rights Committee. Ms Sveaass has worked with refugees and torture victims for many years.

Ms Sveaass was nominated as Nordic candidate for the Committee Against Torture, and was re-elected for a new four-year term on 13 October, gaining 78 of 128 votes. The other candidates that were elected to the Committee were nominated by China, Morocco, Italy and Spain. The remaining members of the Committee come from the US, Ecuador, Senegal, Chile and Cyprus.

“Efforts to combat torture are a key priority for this Government, and we are delighted that Ms Sveaass stood for re-election to this important monitoring body,” Mr Støre commented.

Read more about the UN Committee against Torture.