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Rule of Law: Investigative Interviewing for Fair and Efficient Administration of Justice

Supporting cooperation with and training to police, different actors within the judiciary, and academia to increase protection against abuse of power and torture. 

Illustration of an interview situation. Police officer, suspect and defence lawyer.

Background

National legal systems are meant play a central role in implementing human rights, yet we often find that the mechanisms needed to realize this intention are almost absent.

NCHR supports the judiciary's capacity to improve its human rights compliance by strengthening human rights knowledge among core actors within the chain of justice, including judges, prosecutors and the police. To this end we teach police detectives investigative interviewing methods that could contribute to prevent torture and errors of justice, and cooperate with the former UN Special Rapporteur on Torture, professor Juan E. Méndez to promote international Principles on Effective Interviewing for Investigations and Information Gathering, also referred to "the Méndez Principles". 

 

Our projects aim at building competence on investigative interviewing among law enforcement personnel. We engage with leading researchers in the area of criminal investigations, evidence evaluation, and forensic interviewing. Our approach is to introduce the concept in our partner countries, and provide a group of dedicated fact-finders - primarily police detectives - with training and access to relevant literature and international research networks. We also work globally, and in multilateral fora promoting international Principles on Effective Interviewing for Investigations and Information Gathering. See our training material and resources to learn more. 

In my time as UN Special Rapporteur on Torture, I observed that the most frequent setting where torture and coercion take place is the course of the interrogation of suspects and for the purpose of obtaining confessions. - Professor Juan E. Méndez 

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