Bouyid v Belgium: The “minimum level of severity” and Human Dignity's Role in Article 3 ECHR

The Grand Chamber of the European Court of Human Rights recently delivered an important judgment on Article 3 ECHR in the case of Bouyid v Belgium. In Bouyid, the Grand Chamber was called upon to consider whether slaps inflicted on a minor and an adult in police custody were in breach of Article 3 ECHR, which provides that ‘No one shall be subjected to torture or to inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment’. Overruling the Chamber judgment in the case, the Grand Chamber ruled by 14 votes to 3 that there had been a substantive violation of Article 3 in that the applicants had been subjected to degrading treatment by members of the Belgian police; it found that there had been a breach of the investigative duty under Article 3 also. In this comment, I focus on the fundamental basis of disagreement between the majority of the Grand Chamber and those who found themselves in dissent, on the question of whether there had been a substantive breach of Article 3. The crux of the disagreement lay in the understanding and application of the test of ‘minimum level of severity’, which the ECtHR has established as decisive of whether a particular form of ill-treatment crosses the Article 3 threshold, seen also in light of Article 3’s absolute character, which makes it non-displaceable – that is, immune to trade-offs of the type applicable in relation to qualified rights such as privacy and freedom of expression. I consider the way the majority of the Grand Chamber unpacked and applied the concept of dignity – or ‘human dignity’ – towards finding a substantive breach of Article 3, and briefly distil some of the principles underpinning the understanding of human dignity emerging in the Court’s analysis.

1.° Excerpta è variis Servii Honorati scriptis ad grammaticam spectantibus. — 2.° Anonymi versus elegiaci in philomelam. — 3.° Beati Eugenii, Episcopi, carmina nonnulla. — 4.° Anonymi commentarius in artem grammaticam Donati. — 5.° Anonymi carmen inscriptum : conflictus veris et hiemis. — 6.° Anonymi grammatica. — 7.° Aenigmata Aldhelmi : finis desideratur.

Colbertinus

1.° Anonymi varii tractatus de motu. — 2.° Bradwardini proportiones velocitatum in motibus. — 3.° Anonymi tractatus de elementis et eorum mixtione. — 4.° Anonymi tractatus de divisibilitate continui. — 5.° Nicolai de Ultricuria quaestio : utrùm visio creaturae rationalis beatificalis, per verbum possit intendi naturaliter.

Colbertinus

Letter to Mr. Highman and Mr. Donaghue in which Mr. Harding in enclosing 3 pounds as a subscription for the pilot

Letter to Mr. Highman and Mr. Donaghue in which Mr. Harding in enclosing 3 pounds as a subscription for the pilot. This is initialed by S.D. Woodruff, May 12, 1848.

Two isomeric reaction products: hydrogen-bonded sheets in methyl 4-(5-amino-3-phenyl-1H-pyrazol-1-yl)-3-nitrobenzoate and hydrogen-bonded chains of edge-fused rings in methyl 3-nitro-4-[(5-phenyl-1H-pyrazol-3-yl)amino] benzoate

In methyl 4-(5-amino-3-phenyl-1H-pyrazol-1-yl)-3-nitrobenzoate, C17H14N4O4, the molecules are linked into complex sheets by a combination of N-H center dot center dot center dot N, N-H center dot center dot center dot O and C - H center dot center dot center dot O hydrogen bonds. In the isomeric methyl 3-nitro-4-[(5-phenyl- 1H-pyrazol-3-yl)amino] benzoate, molecules exhibit a polarized molecular-electronic structure and are linked into chains of edge-fused rings by a combination of N-H center dot center dot center dot O and C - H center dot center dot center dot O hydrogen bonds.

First skills in numeracy 3. Practice book 1.

Es un cuaderno para ejercicios de aritmética de los alumnos de la etapa clave uno (key stage uno) y se situa en el Marco del proyecto del Consejo Nacional de Cáculo (Framework of the National Numeracy Project).

First skills in numeracy 3. Practice book 2.

Es un cuaderno de ejercicios de aritmética para los alumnos de la etapa clave uno (key stage uno) y se sitúa en el Marco del proyecto del Consejo Nacional de Cálculo (Framework of the National Numeracy Project).

First skills in numeracy 3. Practice book 3.

Es un cuaderno para hacer ejercicios de aritmética para los alumnos de la etapa clave uno (key stage uno) y se situa en el Marco del proyecto del Consejo Nacional de Cáculo (Framework of the National Numeracy Project).

Citizenship in action. 3.

Ciudadanía es un tema nuevo en el curriculo nacional inglés para los estudiantes de las etapas 3 y 4 (Key stage 3 y 4). Este texto cumple con el objetivo del Programa de estudio de Ciudadanía que es desarrollar los conocimientos y habilidades que se necesitan en el siglo XXI para convertirse en un miembro informado, responsable y activo de la comunidad local, nacional y mundial. Para ayudar a entender las cuestiones importantes de esta materia, cada capítulo incluye actividades, preguntas sobre temas clave, definiciones de términos y un resumen.

Acute ingestion of a meal rich in n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids results in rapid gastric emptying in humans

Background: n-3 Polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) have proven benefits for both the development of atherosclerosis and inflammatory conditions. The effects on atherosclerosis may be partly mediated by the observed reduction in fasting and postprandial triacylglycerol concentrations after both acute and chronic n-3 PUFA ingestion. Objective: The aim of this study was to assess gastric emptying and gastrointestinal hormone release after the consumption of mixed meals rich in n-3 PUFAs or other classes of fatty acids. Design: Ten healthy women (aged 50–62 y) completed 4 separate study visits in a single-blind, randomized design. On each occasion, subjects consumed 40 g oil rich in either saturated fatty acids, monounsaturated fatty acids, n-6 PUFAs, or n-3 PUFAs as part of a mixed meal. [1-13C]Octanoic acid (100 mg) was added to each oil. Gastric emptying was assessed by a labeled octanoic acid breath test, and concentrations of gastrointestinal hormones and plasma lipids were measured. Results: Recovery of 13C in breath was enhanced after n-3 PUFA ingestion (P < 0.005). The cholecystokinin response after the n-3 PUFA meal was significantly delayed (P < 0.001), and the glucagon-like peptide 1 response was significantly reduced (P < 0.05). Conclusion: The inclusion of n-3 PUFAs in a meal alters the gastric emptying rate, potentially as the result of changes in the pattern of cholecystokinin and glucagon-like peptide 1 release.