Stop Rubber Bullets. The use of kinetic energy projectiles and torture in the Spanish State

Authors

  • Anaïs Franquesa Griso Criminal lawyer and director of Irídia - Human Rights Defense Center, a non-profit organisation created in 2015, specialised in strategic litigation in cases of institutional violence
  • Carles Guillot Campillo Founder of Stop Balas de Goma. He suffered an eye mutilation by rubber bullet, in 2011 in Barcelona, during the attempted eviction of the occupied social centre Kasa de la Muntanya
  • Ester Quintana Porras Member of Stop Balas de Goma and the Plataforma Ojo con tu Ojo. She suffered an eye mutilation in Barcelona during a general strike on 14 November 2012
  • Pau Pérez Sales Clinical Director. SiRa Center.
  • Irene Urango Montilla Historian and journalist. She is a member of the advocacy team of Irídia - Human Rights Defense Center and is a reference point for the organisation's line of work on the control of the security forces.
  • Serlinda Vigara Mas Specialist in the right to protest at Novact, she is part of the unit's technical team in the area of strengthening human rights defenders.

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.7146/torture.v34i1.145054

Keywords:

Torture, Spian, Less-Lethal weapons, Rubber Bullets

Abstract

Rubber bullets are projectiles whose use is potentially lethal. Between 1976 and 2017, they have caused at least 23 deaths and dozens of injuries in Spain, many of them serious, with loss of sight being the main cause. In the period 2000 - 2020 alone, more than 40 people have been affected. However, the data available do not reflect, in quantitative terms, the reality of the problem which, far from the figures for other contexts, shows qualitative impacts, both individual and collective. This article reviews the trajectory of the last twenty years, emphasising those key aspects that have made a difference in the process towards the prohibition of this weapon in different territories of the state, as well as evaluating the psychosocial impacts that its use has caused.

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Published

2024-05-28 — Updated on 2024-05-28

How to Cite

Franquesa Griso, A., Guillot Campillo, C., Quintana Porras, E., Pérez Sales, P., Urango Montilla, I., & Vigara Mas, S. (2024). Stop Rubber Bullets. The use of kinetic energy projectiles and torture in the Spanish State. Torture Journal, 34(1), 89–99. https://doi.org/10.7146/torture.v34i1.145054

Issue

Vol. 34 No. 1 (2024): Torture Journal: Journal on Rehabilitaiton of Torture Victims and Prevention of Torture

Section

Special Section: Less-Lethal Weapons

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