Article 3  Of the Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms guarantees:

"No one shall be subjected to torture or to inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment."

This is one of the fundamental prohibitions provided for in the Convention, which has no exceptions and is that under no circumstances  the state cannot violate the physical and moral inviolability of man.

In which cases should you file a complaint with the ECtHR alleging a violation of Article 3 of the Convention?

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• ill-treatment of a person who is in custody or under any other state control

• disproportionate or arbitrary punishment of a person by law enforcement agencies (including detention of persons with serious physical disabilities, extradition, deportation, deportation);

• ill-treatment of a person awaiting punishment;

• coercive measures of a medical nature;

• the absence or dishonesty of the investigation of cases of ill-treatment by law enforcement agencies;

• human trafficking, bondage, sexual slavery;

• use of force, weapons and special means;

• threats of ill-treatment;

• etc.

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In doing so, the Court is guided by certain criteria in determining in each case whether torture or inhuman treatment has taken place,  or behavior that degrades human dignity .

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Torture is any act committed intentionally to cause severe pain or suffering, physical or moral, in order to obtain information or recognition from it or from a third party, to punish it for acts committed or suspected by it or a third party, and to intimidate or compel her or a third party, or for any reason based on discrimination of any kind.

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Inhuman treatment is considered to be actions that in a sense do not have such intensity or purpose as torture.

In the Greek case (Greek case, Commission report of 5 November 1969, Yearbook 12), the Commission noted that the concept of inhuman treatment covers at least such treatment which intentionally causes severe suffering, mental or physical, which is unjustified in a particular situation. The court found the treatment to be "inhuman", which was, among other things, intentional, applied for several hours in a row and resulted in either actual bodily harm or severe physical and moral suffering.
 
Degrading treatment is one that causes victims to feel fear, torment, and inferiority, and is capable of humiliating and disgracing them. It is also characterized as capable of breaking the victim's physical and moral resistance (Ireland v. The United Kingdom, application no. 5310/71, 18 January 1978, § 167) or forcing him to act against his will or conscience (conclusion Commissions in Greek Affairs, Section IV, p. 186).

In deciding whether a punishment or treatment is “degrading” within the meaning of Article 3, consideration should be given to whether its purpose is to humiliate and disgrace the person concerned and, in view of its consequences, whether it adversely affects his identity, incompatible with Article 3 (Raninen v. Finland, application no. 20972/92, 16 December 1997, § 55) . However, the absence of such a purpose cannot preclude a violation of Article 3.