Selected members of the judicial branch of Argentina came together for a seminar on 27 and 28 April in Buenos Aires to discuss strategies for strengthening their role in the prevention of torture and ill-treatment. The seminar, hosted by the APT, the Human Rights Secretariat of the Ministry of Justice and the Center for Legal and Social Studies (CELS), was inaugurated with a public conference at the University of Buenos Aires on 26 April. The Spanish version of "Combating torture: a manual for judges and prosecutors", published by the University of Essex and written by Conor Foley, was publicly launched on the occasion. During the seminar, lessons were drawn from the manual, as well as from the expertise of distinguished participants from Europe and neighbouring countries. The most insightful debate emerged from the real case studies presented by the protagonists themselves: judges, prosecutors and public defence attorneys from the capital and the provinces of Argentina illustrating how they resort to the sometimes creative and audacious use of judicial tools to combat the alarmingly frequent cases of torture and ill-treatment in the country. Organizers are currently engaged in negotiations to commit national and provincial judicial authorities to follow-up action. The APT is grateful for the generous financial support of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, as well as the Swiss Embassy in Argentina.
