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description=What tear gas is, how it is abused and why you should care;

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Text of the page (random words):
ing directly at people tear gas grenades projectiles or canisters should never be fired directly at individuals when fired these canisters become dangerous projectiles and direct impact can result in penetrating trauma or blindness especially when fired from a close range or targeted to specific parts of the body in this example from protests in caracas venezuela on 26 april 2017 a protester is hit directly by a tear gas canister in his stomach your browser does not support html5 video excessive quantities law enforcement agencies should not repeatedly expose the same targets to chemical irritants over a short period in such situations the exposure to the toxic properties of the chemical agents can cause unnecessary harm and increase respiratory complaints human rights standards require that their use is necessary and proportionate to achieve a law enforcement objective i e dispersal this requires a constant re assessment of the situation before any further rounds of chemical irritants are dispensed or fired in protests in hong kong on 21 july 2019 police fired numerous rounds of tear gas at crowds on connaught rd engulfing protesters in clouds of tear gas your browser does not support html5 video peaceful demonstrations tear gas should never be used against peaceful or largely peaceful public assemblies it should only be used in situations of generalized violence for the purpose of dispersing a crowd when all other means have failed to contain the violence and where there are adequate escape routes it should be used to the minimum extent necessary and only after clear warnings are given repeated or prolonged exposure should be avoided when deploying tear gas police must always consider its indiscriminate nature and that it may affect bystanders not engaged in the violence in the example here from 9 october 2019 police in the city of guyaquil in ecuador launch tear gas canisters towards peaceful protesters forcing them to disperse your browser does not support html5 video susceptible people tear gas is by its nature indiscriminate and affects people differently some groups like older people pregnant women or people suffering from illnesses could be particularly susceptible to the effects of tear gas and find it difficult to escape affected areas young children might be excessively exposed to the toxins given that tear gas tends to concentrate closer to the ground and their smaller body size concentrates toxic effects tear gas should not be deployed near or around a hospital and medical care must be available to those who require it the police should always bear in mind the diversity of those participating in a public assembly and their varying means of escaping or avoiding exposure to tear gas in this example from sudan on 9 january 2019 sudanese security forces enter a hospital and fire live bullets and teargas affecting patients in the medical facility your browser does not support html5 video nose inhalation of tear gas can cause an intense burning sensation inflammation and mucus production respiratory system exposure can produce inflammation of the respiratory system causing pain coughing difficulty breathing a choking sensation and bronchorrhea individuals with pre existing respiratory conditions are more vulnerable to complications and exposure can precipitate respiratory attacks and distress resulting in hypoxia lungs according to the center for disease control exposure to tear gas can cause chest tightness coughing choking sensation noisy breathing wheezing shortness of breath eye irritation can produce tearing redness burning and pain blurred vision swelling and eyelid spasms exposure can also onset conjunctivitis mouth exposure can cause pain salivation and drooling difficulty swallowing nausea and vomiting skin dermal contact can result in burning redness itching and allergic reactions lasting for up to several days tear gas can stay on clothing and prolong exposure which can result in blistering and burning psychological physicians have cautioned against the possible psychological consequences of tear gas exposure disorientation from physical symptoms can cause anxiety and panic and there have been documented cases of post traumatic stress disorder or ptsd and acute stress disorder resulting from prolonged or repeated exposure cardiovascular system chemical irritants can lead to increases in heart rate and blood pressure effects that are particularly dangerous for people with pre existing heart conditions direct impact direct impact from tear gas canisters can cause injury including head trauma bruising and broken bones in some cases when these canisters have been used in such a way as to become projectiles direct impact has resulted in death your browser does not support html5 video your browser does not support html5 video your browser does not support html5 video your browser does not support html5 video your browser does not support html5 video all dates all dates all type of abuses all type of abuses all countries all countries key manufacturer event download data all dates all dates all type of abuses all type of abuses all countries all countries incident map amnesty international verified over 500 videos of tear gas misuse in 31 countries and territories over 100 of which are included in this map to illustrate the various ways tear gas is abused please note that some of this content may be distressing to some people launch incident map background information testimony show more show less additional resources linked companies and manufacturers similar incidents share this help spread the word by sharing this with others on social media or email your browser does not support html5 video manufacturer company overview headquarters revenue per year not publicly available units sold per year not publicly available exports to not publicly available products they manufacture and sell download catalogue company website similar incidents share this help spread the word by sharing this with others on social media or email about the project tear gas and torture or other ill treatment there is a growing consensus amongst legal experts that some uses of tear gas can constitute torture or other ill treatment torture is defined in international law as the intentional infliction of severe pain or suffering to be torture the pain or suffering must be inflicted with the intention of eliciting information or a confession or for the purpose of punishment and it must be perpetrated either by officials or with their consent or acquiescence un convention against torture and other cruel inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment amnesty international have documented numerous cases of severe pain or suffering caused by teargas use such as severe burning suffocation and long term breathing problems as well as instances in which its use is clearly punitive with this in mind our conclusion is that in these instances the use of tear gas constitute torture under international law nils melzer the united nations special rapporteur on torture and other cruel inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment has argued that if less lethal weapons such as tear gas are used intentionally and purposefully to inflict pain or suffering on a powerless person for instance when tear gas is fired directly at an individual or used in confined spaces this would amount to torture or other ill treatment international law imposes specific obligations on states to prevent torture and other ill treatment to investigate its occurrences criminalise complicity in such activities and to provide reparations to the victims there is a growing recognition that this includes prohibiting the trade in equipment such as tear gas where there is a high risk that it would be used to carry out torture and other ill treatment the regulation of the tear gas trade despite its widespread misuse there are no agreed international regulations on the trade in riot control agents such as tear gas different states apply different standards and in some states the trade remains largely unregulated few states provide public information on the quantity and destination of tear gas exports hampering civil society oversight for over twenty years amnesty international working closely with the omega research foundation has been campaigning for greater controls on the production use and trade in tear gas and other less lethal weapons as a result the un and regional bodies such as the eu and the council of europe have recognised the need to regulate the export of less lethal weapons one potential route for the creation of a legally binding international instrument which would control the trade in tear gas is through the recently created alliance for torture free trade on 18 september 2017 the eu argentina and mongolia launched the alliance for torture free trade on the margins of the un general assembly meeting in new york to date over 60 states from all regions of the world have joined and the un has committed to examine the feasibility and scope of common international standards in this area amnesty international is campaigning for the inclusion of riot control agents including tear gas in any international regulatory framework methodology from 2018 onwards amnesty international started to catalogue videos of current and past instances of misuse of tear gas around the world experts in video verification working with the crisis evidence lab with the help of amnesty s digital verification corps dvc based at the university of essex human rights centre the centre for governance and human rights at the university of cambridge the human rights center at uc berkeley the international human rights law programme at the university of toronto and the human rights centre at the university of pretoria verified close to 500 videos and highlighted for this platform almost 80 events in 22 countries and territories where tear gas has been misused confirming the location date and validity the teams categorized these videos into five separate types of misuse including against peaceful demonstrations vulnerable individuals in confined spaces in excessive quantities and direct fire at individuals these were selected based in part on the un s guidance on less lethal weapons in law enforcement in january 2021 the platform was updated to include an additional 27 new incidents from 13 countries in partnership with the omega research foundation experts in weapon identification amnesty analyzed various tear gas canisters and launchers present in the verified media to identify which companies were providing these weapons subsequently amnesty international contacted these companies to request information on their due diligence policies and procedures for addressing the potential human rights impacts involved in the export of its products and services amnesty international also worked with situ research on a virtual reconstruction of how a tear gas canister works the video includes simulations of how a tear gas canister can act as a projectile particularly when fired at individuals as well as how the gas disperses when used excessively or in a confined space these visualisations provide a more comprehensive understanding of why tear gas canisters have led to so many injuries and some deaths a few items to note regarding methods media evidence amnesty international used open source intelligence osint research techniques to obtain and verify all of the media assets included in the platform many videos were sourced from social media platforms including but not limited to instagram facebook youtube and twitter where necessary videos were edited to protect the identity of the persons involved where possible we independently acquired testimonies from witnesses and protesters present at the events documented many of these testimonies were kept anonymous to protect the person s identity research the information on the platform was acquired through independent research and interviews with experts in the fields of toxicology and health the information on chemicals mentioned in the what s inside section of the platform was primarily taken from the national center for biotechnology information the information on health consequences mentioned in the health consequences section of the platform was primarily taken from the u s center for disease control and prevention and from physicians for human rights interviews amnesty international approached various experts in the field for interviews on the different aspects of tear gas interviews were conducted both in person and remotely these interviews include rohini haar emergency physician and researcher uc berkeley dr rohini haar is an emergency physician with expertise in health and human rights her work focuses on the protection of human rights in times of complex humanitarian crisis and conflict she is particularly interested in the protection of health workers and health services she is a research fellow at the human rights center at uc berkeley s school of law and works clinically at kaiser medical center in oakland california dr haar holds an md from the university of chicago pritzker school of medicine and an mph from columbia university mailman school of public health graham dossett policing and human rights expert university of essex graham dossett served as a police officer in the united kingdom for thirty years retiring with the rank of superintendent higher grade since his retirement from the police service graham dossett completed an ll m in international human rights at the human rights centre university of essex graham dossett holds a ba in policy making and administration and is a chartered fellow of the chartered institute of personnel and development f c i p d he currently works as an independent advisor in the field of policing and human rights he is a visiting fellow of the human rights centre at the university of essex tara van ho business and human rights expert university of essex dr tara van ho joined the school of law and human rights centre in january 2018 her main research interests are business and human rights investment law and human rights economic social and cultural rights and transitional justice she is the co president of the global business and human rights scholars association and sits on the editorial board of the business and human rights journal dr van ho is one of the leaders of the essex business and human rights project through which she advises states intergovernmental organisations non governmental organisations and businesses on issues of business investment and human rights dr van ho studied law at the university of cincinnati and holds an llm in international human rights law and phd in law from the university of essex anna feigenbaum associate professor in communication and digital media bournemouth university dr anna feigenbaum is associate professor in communication and digital media at bournemouth university before joining ...