Use of sanctioned torture in cases of threats to national security

Introduction

Torture has always been associated with obtaining confessions. During the Middle Ages, the practice of torture attained prominence as the most efficient method of procuring a confession in legal proceedings. Even before that, torture was used, and continues to be used, to force victims to provide information concerning criminal, political, or military knowledge to which the victim is presumed to have access (Raymond, 13). There are many theoretical explanations for why states implement policies of state torture. Most contemporary theories incorporate central themes from the utilitarian-expediency perspective which evolved from the ...