Punishment Method Used In History Which Are Now Banned

Historical systems of punishment could be exceptionally harsh. Torture, public physical punishment and executions were used by governments across different periods and regions. Many such practices are now prohibited under international human-rights standards, although laws still differ substantially around the world.

Torture

Methods deliberately designed to inflict severe physical or psychological suffering were historically used to extract information, obtain confessions or punish prisoners.

The United Nations Convention against Torture establishes an international framework prohibiting torture. States that are parties to the convention have legal obligations under it.

Public Corporal Punishment

Whipping, flogging and similar physical punishments were historically administered publicly in numerous countries.

Many jurisdictions have abolished judicial corporal punishment. However, it would be inaccurate to describe corporal punishment as universally banned today: laws differ between countries, and some jurisdictions retain forms of judicial corporal punishment.

Branding And Mutilation

Branding offenders with heated metal and imposing punishments involving permanent physical injury occurred in various historical legal systems.

Such practices conflict with modern human-rights protections in many jurisdictions. The Universal Declaration of Human Rights states that no person should be subjected to torture or cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment.

Execution Methods

Historical execution methods included hanging, beheading, burning and other methods that varied by country and period.

The modern position differs dramatically worldwide. Many countries have abolished capital punishment completely, while others retain it for some offences.

Amnesty International tracks the worldwide legal status of capital punishment, while individual governments publish their own criminal laws.

Imprisonment Has Changed Too

Even where imprisonment remains lawful, treatment of prisoners is increasingly governed by legal standards.

The United Nations Standard Minimum Rules for the Treatment of Prisoners, known as the Nelson Mandela Rules, establish widely recognised minimum standards concerning matters including accommodation, healthcare, discipline and restraints.

Country Differences Matter

When reading claims that an old punishment is "now banned," check exactly where.

• The UK has abolished capital punishment.
• European human-rights law contains strong prohibitions against torture and inhuman or degrading punishment.
• The United States prohibits cruel and unusual punishments constitutionally but retains capital punishment in federal law and some states.
• Other countries maintain different criminal penalties.

Historical photographs and records can therefore show punishments that would be unlawful in many countries today without implying that every practice has disappeared everywhere.