Frequently Asked Questions

Questions about the MF:

Questions about the meaning and consequences of torture:

Torture methods explained:

Questions about the MF:

What is the Medical Foundation for the Care of Victims of Torture?

The Medical Foundation for the Care of Victims of Torture (MF) is the only organisation in the UK dedicated solely to the treatment of torture survivors.

A registered charity established in 1985, the main treatment centre is in London, with branches in Manchester, Newcastle and Glasgow. Two more are planned for the West Midlands and Yorkshire.

The MF offers medical consultation, examination and forensic documentation of injuries, psychological treatment and support, and practical help.

Since its inception, more than 45,000 people have been referred for help. In 2007, the four centres received nearly 2,000 new requests for help. Clients came from nearly 100 countries, with significant numbers from Sri Lanka, Democratic Republic of Congo, Zimbabwe and Iran.

Services provided by the MF

History of the MF

Where is the Medical Foundation located?

The MF has four centres throughout the UK:

Two additional centres are planned - the West Midlands in 2008 and Yorkshire & Humberside in 2009.

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Who are the victims of torture?

Since the MF was created in 1985, it has received over 45,000 requests for help. In 2007, some 2,000 people - men, women and children - were referred to the MF for assistance.

Some victims are targeted for speaking publicly against the authorities, others are ‘caught in the crossfire' of a conflict, and many due to their race, ethnic origin, gender, religious, cultural or political beliefs.

The majority of the MF's clients are aged 25-35 years, although some are children and teenagers and others are above 60.

In 2007, 58% of new clients referred to the MF were men, 34% were women and 8% were children under 18 years old.

Survivors' stories

How does the MF help people who have survived torture?

The MF provides free medical consultation, examination and forensic documentation of injuries for medico-legal reports, psychological treatment and support, individual therapy, group work and practical help and advice to survivors of torture and organised violence.

Services provided by the MF

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Who is employed by the MF?

Across its four centres, the MF employs 140 staff and an additional 80 interpreters.

Staff include caseworkers, counsellors, doctors, legal advisors, physiotherapists, psychiatrists, psychologists, psychotherapists, child and family therapists and group workers to support clients' rehabilitation.

Volunteers make an invaluable contribution to the MF - with 147 volunteers work at the London centre, 41 in the north-west, 15 in Scotland and 12 in the north-east.

Jobs and volunteering opportunities available at the MF.

Which languages are interpreted at the MF?

Seventy-five experienced and specially trained interpreters translate 54 different languages and dialects (listed below) at the MF, however additional languages will also  be accommodated when necessary.

Clients may write to the MF in their first language and they will receive a response in the same language.

Interpreters provide assistance in both individual and group sessions.

Languages interpreted at the MF: Albanian, Amharic, Arabic, Armenian, Azeri, Bambara, Burmese, Croatian, Dari, Dioula, Farsi, French, Fullah, Fur, Hindi, Horami, Hungarian, Kashonke, Kikuyu, Kinyarwanda, Kirmanji, Kirundi, Koniaka, Krio, Lingala, Luganda, Malinke, Mandingo, Mandinka, Mandarin, Mongolian, Odieneka, Oromo, Pashtoo, Portuguese, Punjabi, Runyankole, Russian, Sarahule, Serbo Croatian, Shona, Sinhalese, Somali, Sorani, Spanish, Swahili, Tamil, Tigre, Tigrinya, Tshiluba, Turkish, Urdu, Vietnamese and Wolof.

Further information about MF's interpreters

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How can I refer someone to the MF?

Anyone can refer a person to the MF and self-referrals are also accepted.

Referral forms are often submitted by doctors, schools, refugee community organisations, community mental health teams, family members and other voluntary and statutory bodies. Organisations which assist newly arrived asylum seekers, such as Migrant Helpline and Refugee Council, also commonly refer survivors to the MF.

Refer a survivor of torture or organised violence to the MF

What happens after a person has been referred to the MF?

All referral applications, which detail a survivor's history of torture, are submitted to the Intake Team which considers whether a person falls within the MF's remit, how the person is coping psychologically and practically and whether the MF can offer a timely and effective service.

When accepted, the MF will contact the survivor to arrange a meeting. Interpreters will be arranged wherever necessary.

Survivors may also be referred to other agencies such as a National Health Service community mental health team or a voluntary organisation specialising in a certain field of care, where it is felt that it would equally meet their needs.

Survivors seeking medico-legal reports to support their claim for asylum can request this through their solicitors.

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What is a medico-legal report?

MF doctors are trained in preparing medico-legal reports (MLRs) in accordance with the Istanbul Protocol which provides a clear set of guidelines for the examination and documentation of torture and its consequences by medical experts.

The purpose of a MLR is to assess the degree of consistency between the attribution given to the survivor's injuries and their probable causation. Reports are read back to clients, which can trigger further memories of events. The reports are finally reviewed by a senior doctor and legal officer, before being approved and sent to the survivor's legal representative for use in their asylum claim.

MLR's are prepared by MF doctors, caseworker counsellors, psychologists and psychiatrists.

Referrals for medico-legal reports

Methodology of the preparation of medico-legal reports 

How is the MF funded?

The Medical Foundation for the Care of Victims of Torture is an independent charity (company limited by guarantee, registered in England no. 2398586, charity reg. no. 1000340). It is the only organisation of its kind in the United Kingdom.

We rely largely on individual donations and it is a testament to the support we attract year after year that this has been the core of our income throughout the charity's history, contributing 70% towards our overall income nearly every year. In 2007, donations from individuals contributed £5,719,897 towards a total income of £8,189,435.

However, our ongoing strategy is to raise income from a variety of sources rather than focus on one particular donor or source of funding. Our objective is to give the organisation a safe and sustainable framework that allows us to continue providing services to survivors of torture.

We do not accept any money from the Government so as to remain completely impartial and independent. The only exception is funding we receive from the Department of Health towards the production of guidelines for assessing torture survivors and for the training of health professionals.

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How can I donate to the MF?

There are several ways to donate to the MF, such as online donations, legacies and fundraising with local supporters groups.

How you can help

  
Questions about the meaning and consequences of torture:

What is torture?

Article 1 of the United Nations Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (1984) defines torture as: "Any act by which severe pain or suffering, whether physical or mental, is intentionally inflicted on a person for such purposes as obtaining from him or a third person information or a confession, punishing him for an act he or a third person has committed or is suspected of having committed, or intimidating or coercing him or a third person, or for any reason based on discrimination of any kind, when such pain or suffering is inflicted by or at the instigation of or with the consent or acquiescence of a public official or other person acting in an official capacity."

The United Nations definition of torture incorporates the following five aspects:

  • severe pain and suffering
  • intentionally inflicted
  • physical and/or psychological pain
  • committed for a specific purpose
  • committed by an agent of the state, which can include rebel factions
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Where is torture occurring?

In 2007, clients referred to the MF came from over 95 different countries, including Iran, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Sri Lanka and Zimbabwe.

About 50% of clients come from Africa, with 20% from the Middle East and 18% from Asia.

Top ten nationalities referred to the MF

How does torture effect a person?

Effects vary from victim to victim, although many agree that the torture they endured is only the beginning - the ensuing psychological trauma can last a lifetime.

MF clients are commonly provided care and treatment for ongoing psychological effects of torture such as post traumatic stress disorder, anxiety, flashbacks, nightmares and insomnia. Depression, exacerbated by overwhelming senses of humiliation and shame, triggers suicidal tendencies in some survivors.

Having lost faith in humanity, some clients find it difficult to form and maintain relationships, have physical contact and trust other people. Having fled for survival, many clients feel extreme guilt for leaving family, friends and other victims behind.

The MF provides specialist therapy and group activities in a supportive environment designed to encourage recovery and rehabilitation.

Services provided by the MF

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Are all torture survivors in the UK asylum seekers?

Many MF clients are asylum seekers, having escaped torture and persecution in their home countries and arrived in the UK seeking protection. Others may have been granted protection as refugees under the 1951 Refugee Convention.

However, the MF has also provided care and treatment to British citizens, tortured in various countries and conflicts.

What is the difference between an asylum seeker and a refugee?

An asylum seeker is someone seeking protection from persecution who has made a formal application for asylum to the UK Government and is awaiting a decision.

The Home Office determines whether a person qualifies for protection as per the 1951 UN Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees. Under the 1951 Convention every person has the right to ask any country for protection from persecution.

A refugee is someone whose asylum application has been approved by the Home Office and who has been granted permission to live in the UK.

According to the 1951 Convention, a refugee is a person who:

  • is outside his/her country of nationality or habitual residence;
  • has a well-founded fear of persecution because of his/her race, religion, nationality, membership in a particular social group or political opinion; and
  • is unable or unwilling to avail himself/herself of the protection of that country, or to return there, for fear of persecution.
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What are the different types of torture?

Methods of torture, many of which are listed below, vary considerably from country to country and are often inflicted in combination:

  • Beatings, being kicked and punched, with or without an instrument
  • Bound, tied, handcuffed
  • Burnt (with acid, heat, cigarettes, etc)
  • Cold water / hosing
  • Cut
  • Death of family members
  • Deprivation of fluid, food, and/or sleep
  • Detention / imprisonment of family member/s
  • Electric shock
  • Enforced standing
  • Falaka
  • Forced to hurt, rape or kill family members
  • Kept naked
  • Loud noises / music
  • Medical (drugs / dental)
  • Mock execution
  • Rape
  • Removal of toe and/or fingernails
  • Sensory deprivation
  • Sexual assault and sexual humiliation
  • Sight and/or sound of others being tortured
  • Simulated drowning / waterboarding
  • Solitary confinement / isolation
  • Suffocation
  • Suspension / hanging
  • Threats of violence / death to another person
  • Threats of violence / death to self
  • Violence against victim's community
  • Violence to family members
  • Whipping

What is 'torture lite'?

'Torture lite' refers to 'stress and distress techniques' including hooding, restraints, noise bombardment, prolonged sleep deprivation, death threats, and temperature extremes.

The calculated combination of such techniques may not physically scar but can cause lasting, profound psychological damage. Under the terms of the European Court on Human Rights, the combined effect of stress and distress techniques when used over a protracted period of time would amount to torture given the severity and degree of pain and suffering inflicted.

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How is sexual humiliation used as a torture method?

Sexual humiliation is used to manipulate a victim's religious or cultural beliefs by forcing them to strip naked or adopt sexually explicit poses.

Sexual humiliation is often adopted as a gender-specific method of abuse designed to cause overwhelming humiliation and shame in its victims.

What is a child soldier?

Child soldiers are forced, often through violence, into joining military factions at a young age - sometimes as young as eight.

Many have wielded guns, maimed and even killed, but often child soldiers are also victims, particularly of sexual abuse and rape.

Child soldiers have been recruited into conflicts throughout the world, including Africa, Asia, Europe, the Middle East and South America.

The number of former child soldiers seeking the MF's help has more than doubled since 2002 to 28 in 2007. Child soldiers are offered specialist treatment by the MF's Children and Family team as both survivors and perpetrators of torture.

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What are 'dawn raids'?

Dawns raids are a technique employment by the UK Border Agency which forcibly remove refused asylum seeking families in the early hours of the morning without prior notification.

Families are either taken directly to the airport where they will be removed to their home country, or to an Immigration Removal Centre where they await removal.

What is extraordinary rendition?

Extraordinary rendition is the state sanctioned removal and outsourcing of torture to a third-party state.

This practice allows the state rendering the victim to distance itself from liability for harm suffered on the basis that the torture is carried out in an undisclosed location, often by third-party agents.

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What are diplomatic assurances / memoranda of understanding?

These are agreements between countries pledging that removed persons will not be tortured upon return.

These non-legally binding agreements seek to allow governments to evade their responsibility of non-refoulement - the absolute prohibition within the UN Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment to return people to locations where a genuine risk of torture exists.

Britain currently has memoranda of understanding in place with Jordan, Lebanon and Libya.

What is the Istanbul Protocol?

An official UN document established in 1999, the Istanbul Protocol is formally known as the UN Manual on the Effective Investigation and Documentation of Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment.

The protocol is an international set of guidelines medical experts must follow in the impartial and objective documentation of torture and its consequences.

The protocol provides guiding principles for doctors when investigating claims of torture and includes procedures for gathering reliable, accurate information on which to base conclusions of consistency between the survivor's account and medical findings, documenting these findings and presenting evidence to judiciaries.

MF doctors follow the Istanbul Protocol when preparing medico-legal reports for clients, which are used to support claims for asylum.

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Torture methods explained:

Falaka (also known as falanga, falaq or falagas) is a method of torture where the soles of the feet are bound and hit or whipped, often with a stick, bamboo, rope or wet towels. Some victims endure falaka while suspended by handcuffs from the ceiling.

Sensory bombardment The purpose of sensory bombardment is to cause disorientation by imposing extreme conditions of light and/or excessive noise.

Short shackling Enabling beatings and humiliation, short shackling sees victims forced to stand, handcuffed, with their feet shackled to the floor.

Stress positions Victims are forced to stand for several hours at a time, on the floor or on a plinth and sometimes with their arms outstretched or shackled to the floor or ceiling.

Waterboarding Victims are made to feel as though they are drowning. Held down with a cloth stuffed into their mouth, victims are forced to ingest water hosed or poured liberally over their nose and mouth. Unable to breathe, victims become terrified as they feel they are drowning through the combination of suffering oxygen deprivation to the brain and having taken water into their lungs. This dangerous combination can easily result in fatal suffocation.

Further information about waterboarding

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