We presented a set of shadow reports on normative setbacks and state practices that infringe upon human rights in Argentina during the 83rd session of the United Nations Committee against Torture (CAT). These submissions, prepared in coordination with several social and human rights organizations, describe a context of policies that exacerbate institutional violence, discrimination, and the dismantling of protection mechanisms against torture and cruel, inhuman, or degrading treatment.
Access to Hormone Treatments and the Right to Health
Decree 62/2025 prohibits hormonal and surgical treatments for individuals under the age of 18, constituting a violation of the Gender Identity Law and the principles of non-discrimination and progressive autonomy. The measure deprives trans adolescents of essential interventions for their physical and mental well-being, pushing them into clandestinity and generating suffering that reaches the threshold of cruel, inhuman, or degrading treatment. The report we submitted also highlights the impact of hormone shortages and budget cuts in the health sector, in a context of official discourse that stigmatizes sexual and gender diversity.
Read spanish report at this link.
Refugee Law Reform and the Principle of Non-Refoulement
Together with CAREF, we submitted a report on the reforms introduced by Emergency Decree 942/2024 to Law 26.165, which undermine the principle of non-refoulement established in Article 3 of the Convention. The decree arbitrarily broadens the grounds for exclusion from refugee status—even for individuals charged without a final conviction—and restricts administrative and judicial review of decisions. These reforms undermine the international protection regime for refugees, subordinating it to punitive and discretionary criteria that disregard due process guarantees and international human rights standards.
Read spanish report at this link.
Institutional Violence in Protests and the Use of Less-Lethal Weapons
In coordination with SIPREBA, ARGRA, and the Mapa de la Policía, we submitted a report on the abusive use of so-called less-lethal weapons in the policing of public demonstrations. The document denounces a serious regulatory setback following the repeal of minimum standards that limited their use and the approval of new regulations authorizing the widespread dispersal of protests. We document patterns of police violence, including rubber bullets fired at the head and face, the indiscriminate use of tear gas, and attacks against journalists and demonstrators, including children and older persons. These practices constitute cruel treatment and violations of the rights to protest and to freedom of expression.
Read spanish report at this link.
Prisons: Overcrowding, Torture, and Impunity
Together with ANDHES, ACIFAD, ACVI, APLI, the Network for Human Rights in Places of Detention, Xumek, and OMCT, we submitted a report detailing the worsening prison crisis in the country. The document describes record levels of overcrowding, deaths due to lack of medical care, prolonged isolation regimes, and the systematic use of violence by prison staff. The lack of judicial independence and the inadequate classification of acts of torture perpetuate impunity. We also warn of a weakening of the prevention system, with the National Committee for the Prevention of Torture paralyzed and the absence of local mechanisms in several provinces.
Read spanish report at this link.
Memory, Truth, and Justice
We submitted a dedicated report on setbacks in policies related to memory, truth, and justice, particularly in response to official speeches and measures that seek to relativize or deny state terrorism, revictimizing survivors and families. This document highlights the institutional and symbolic impact of efforts to delegitimize trials for crimes against humanity and the resulting undermining of the commitments assumed by the Argentine State before the international human rights system.
Read spanish report at this link.
The concluding observations to be issued by the Committee against the Torture at the end of its review will be key to highlighting Argentina’s recent setbacks, demanding concrete measures for reparation and prevention, and reaffirming the State’s international obligations to respect, protect, and guarantee the human rights of all persons without discrimination.