Ireland v UK 2018

ECHR have rejected application by Irish Government to revise the original judgement in the Hooded Men case ROI v UK 1978. The 1978 judgement found that the treatment constituted inhuman & degrading treatment, but not torture. Today the ECHR has upheld that judgement 6-1 (Judge O'Leary dissenting- see below) but has refused the application by the Irish Government that evidence shows the treatment constituted torture at this was withheld from the Court in 1978.

New evidence uncovered by PFC in British government declassified documents showed that the premature death of one of the men, Sean Mc Kenna, could be linked to his treatment in Ballykelly where he was subjected to the 5 techniques. Other documents uncovered by PFC, NUI Galway & RTE (as outlined in RTE's Torture Files documentary broadcasted in June 2014) showed that the 'use of torture' was sanctioned at a ministerial level, and that the British government went to great lengths to hide it information from various UK inquiries, the European Commission and the European Court of Human Rights.