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Letter from the Director: Remembering and Honoring The 60th Anniversary of trhe Universal Declaration of Human Rights

Dear friends,

December 10, 2008 marks the 60th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR). This is a time for reflection, a time for hope and a time for action. While the UDHR, which arose from the ashes of the holocaust, was a sentinel moment in delineating human rights-including the right not to be tortured-we still live in a world where torture is condoned and methodically practiced in over 100 countries. And when one individual in the community is tortured, the entire community feels the impact  through a wave of fear and terror.

Since 1995, we at the Bellevue/NYU Program for Survivors of Torture have had the privilege of providing comprehensive, medical, mental health social and legal services for nearly 3,000 men, women and children from over 80 countries. Our patients have endured the brutality and suffering of torture and persecution, and have had to flee their native countries and leave everything behind-including loved ones. They bare witness to the horror of torture but also the hope for healing, resilience and rebuilding of lives.

Demand for our services remains at an all time high, and if we are to continue to provide care to those who are among the most vulnerable we need your help, and we need it now. Without this, we risk having to cut back our services significantly.


Please give to our Program. No donation is too big, or too small. Even four dollars will pay for a metro card for a patient to get to and from an appointment at PSOT (without which they would likely not be able to come). Larger donations will ensure comprehensive care for a number of our patients in the coming year.

We also encourage you to speak out against torture, including a clear and consistent demand for our own country to never again condone nor practice torture, no matter what it is called. We have been working closely with many of our partner organizations including Physicians for Human Rights, Human Rights First, and the National Religious Campaign Against Torture to accomplish this and encourage you to as well.

Finally, we are grateful for the support, compassion and generosity of all those who have worked with, volunteered for and supported our Program since its inception, and to all those who have enabled us to continue our work over the ensuing years.

The challenges we face are substantial, but so too are the opportunities:

-The opportunity to provide needed support and healing to those who still suffer from the physical and psychological scars of torture.

-The opportunity to end torture.

We can and must succeed.

Warmest regards,

Allen Keller