Restart Center for Rehabilitation of Victims of Violence and Torture kicked off with an awareness campaign in June 2023 that aims to shed light on Article 47, the latest amendment to the Lebanese Code of Criminal Procedures. Law 191 amended Article 47 was issued following the continuous efforts of Restart Center to safeguard the rights of individuals who are detained for investigative purposes, ensuring they are protected from any form of mistreatment or torture.
Restart Center is a non-profit organization that works to advocate for and protect the rights of individuals who are subjected to torture and ill-treatment and persons deprived of their liberty. The center has worked on important topics such as health and mental health in places of detention, psychological torture, and national and international legal frameworks that protect persons deprived of their liberty.
This summer, a new awareness campaign commenced to educate and inform all citizens in Lebanon of their rights, in the hope of preventing any
sort of violation in detention facilities. This new campaign is in line with Restart Center’s main goal of preventing torture and ill-treatment, in a strategic, legal and cooperative manner.
In 2020, the Lebanese parliament amended Article 47 of the Code of Criminal Procedure through Law 191. This amendment helps align Lebanese law with the international conventions, especially the International Covenant Against Torture, thus supporting the legal protections of citizens and residents’ rights immediately upon arrest. Article 47 was drafted by Restart Center, who have been working towards enhancing it since 2018. The article mandates that law enforcement must immediately inform detainees of their rights upon arrest and it strictly forbids the arrest of suspects without prior authorization from the Public Prosecution, within a period of 48 hours.
It also details essential provisions that allow citizens and residents to have access to legal representations and legal aid, translation services, both health and me
ntal health care, the right to remain silent, prohibition from torture and ill-treatment, and various other vital protections while in custody.
To support the ongoing awareness initiatives of Article 47 set in June, a 360 integrated campaign begins unfolding this month to communicate the campaign’s core objectives. Restart Center will set its sails by bringing the campaign tagline “Þæá ÈÏøß¡ ÇáÞÇäæä ÍÏøß,” to life through a series of videos and documents providing detailed explanation in colloquial Arabic, on a microsite designed and developed for that purpose.
The online users will be able to access Article 47 in the form of videos and downloadable documents, as well as easily browsable content on the social media channels of the center. The latter hopes to reach local activists for further widespread of the campaign, and thus, the knowledge of these rights in detention situations. Another activity for this campaign is an artistic representation of this campaign’s tagline in local hotspots that target audi
ences frequent.
The aim of this campaign is to extend its reach to as many citizens and residents in Lebanon as possible, ensuring that everyone is well-informed about their rights when faced with an arrest. This is a major step forward for human rights in Lebanon’.
Restart Center is deeply grateful to all those who supported its work, including the judiciary, law enforcement, stakeholders, donors, media figures, and partners. Their crucial and dedicated support was essential to the development and endorsement of this article, and to the successful communication of the campaign to all citizens of Lebanon.
Source: National News Agency – Lebanon