Torture, Death Penalty and Participation by Nurses in Executions

 

ICN Position: 

The International Council of Nurses strongly affirms that nurses should play no voluntary role in any deliberate infliction of physical or mental suffering and should not participate, either directly or indirectly, in the preparation for and the implementation of executions.  To do otherwise is a clear violation of nursing’s ethical code of practice.  

The nurse’s primary responsibility is to those people who require nursing care.

Nurses have a duty to provide the highest possible level of care to victims of cruel, degrading and inhumane treatment, and should speak up against and oppose any deliberate infliction of pain and suffering.  

While ICN considers the death penalty to be unacceptable, clearly the nurse’s responsibility to a prisoner sentenced to death continues until execution.

ICN urges its member national nurses’ associations (NNAs) to lobby for abolition of the death penalty; to actively oppose torture and participation by nurses in executions; and to develop mechanisms to provide nurses with confidential advice and support in caring for prisoners sentenced to death or subjected to torture. 

ICN pledges to take appropriate action and urges NNAs and individual nurses to do the same in support of nurses who become victims of torture, cruel treatment or even death for upholding the professional ethical conduct and for their work in defending human rights. 

ICN believes that all levels of nursing education curricula should include: recognition of human rights issues and violations, such as torture and death penalty; awareness of the use of medical technology including lethal injections for executions; and recognition of the nurse’s right to refuse to participate in executions.

 

Background: 

Violations of human rights are pervasive and scientific advances have brought about sophisticated forms of torture.  ICN supports the United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights¹ and advocates upholding the Convention Against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment, the Istanbul Protocol on Investigation and Documentation of Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment[1].