9. Integrity of the Person

This chapter examines rights at the core of the concept of integrity of the person. Specifically, it considers the right to be free from torture and cruel, inhuman, or degrading treatment or punishment and the right to life. The chapter addresses complex definitional issues of what constitutes torture, and addresses other ill-treatment, mainly in the light of treaty definitions and case law of courts and other bodies charged with applying relevant treaties. The same approach is taken with respect to the right to life, where the central issues of the limits international law places on the death penalty and on the use of force by security forces and law enforcement officials are considered. Both rights are considered to be rules of customary international law and probably peremptory norms of international law (jus cogens).