The MSF report 'Surviving Torture' showcases a project launched in Palermo in 2020 to support migrants and refugees who have experienced torture.

Authors hope the report serves as a reference for both public and private institutions in Italy.

"The people we assist have suffered all types of violence: beatings with truncheons and thick rods, kicks, punches, the falaka stress position, burns, sexual torture," explained Carmelo Virga, the psychologist for the MSF project in Palermo.

"Torture is perpetrated to destroy the individual's own identity and it acts on different levels. The physical wounds reactivate traumatic memories and vice versa", she added.

The project in figures

From January 2021 until September 2023, the project took on 194 persons, 57 of whom were admitted during the first nine months of this year. 61% said they were tortured in Libya, 37% in their country of origin, and the remaining 2% in transit countries during the migration journey.

The main locations where torture took place were detention centers (58% of cases). 20% of patients also said they suffered sexual torture.

The majority of the patients admitted in 2023 (44 out of 57) were men, aged 28 on average, and nine unaccompanied minors.

The countries of origin most represented were Bangladesh, The Gambia, Cameroon, Tunisia, Somalia and the Ivory Coast. Nearly half of the reports requesting the NGO's support came from Italy's shelter centers for international protection seekers and people with international protection.

In addition to medical issues (39% concerning bones and muscles, 11% the result of traumas directly related to the violence suffered), those who survived torture suffered mental health consequences, including post-traumatic stress symptoms (nightmares, intrusive thoughts and flashbacks of the violence suffered) anxiety and depression.

"Our patients reclaim their lives and identities through a personalized and interdisciplinary path, which takes into account the patient's physical and mental health, but also the social context and environment where the person lives," said Virga.

Prospects and requests

MSF welcomes steps taken by the Italian Ministry of Health to guarantee torture survivors access to medical and psychological specialized care.

At the same time, MSF calls on the Ministry of Health and the Regions to guarantee these guidelines are implemented in a rigorous, coherent and efficacious way across Italy.

MSF also calls for the guarantee of early detection of vulnerability caused by torture starting from the disembarking procedures and at the shelter centers, allowing them to access dedicated services, as well as long-term, specialized, multidisciplinary care.

Last, MSF asks that all foreign persons be granted access to social and medical assistance according to the current law.