Despite the fact that we live in the 21st century, there is still a place for torture in the world. For physical and psychological punishment, as well as to obtain the necessary information, various tortures are used, some of which have remained unchanged since ancient times, while others have appeared relatively recently. We will talk about the most common tortures in our time.
Tiger bench
In China, practitioners of Falun Gong, a type of spiritual discipline that first emerged in 1992, are viewed with great fear and persecution. Literally from the very beginning of this discipline, Falun Gong followers have been severely punished.
One form of torture used against them is called the tiger bench. The person is tied tightly by the torso and legs on a long bench, and a board is placed under his back and head. Bricks are then placed under the ankles until the ropes break or the legs held by them break.
Hell of a conclusion
For those Falun Gong members unlucky enough to be caught, there is also an option worse than the tiger bench: hellish imprisonment. This device includes a pair of handcuffs and leg irons that are connected by a steel rod. The rod presses on the prisoner's back, making him practically immobile. The prisoner has difficulty walking, sitting, eating and using the toilet.
Tucker's phone
The last thing people who went to prison in the 1960s wanted was Arkansas State Penitentiary, Tucker. In 1960, doctors at this prison began using a device that became known as the Tucker phone to torture some of the more recalcitrant prisoners.
The device worked like this: a ground wire was wrapped around the prisoner's big toe, while a wire supplying electricity was attached to his genitals. A telephone was then connected to the wire, causing a current to pass through his genitals when he made a call. Tucker's phone was banned in the 1970s.
Rack
Despite the fact that the rack was especially widely used during the Renaissance, during the last century this invention was again remembered. Many people know this type of torture as “Palestinian hanging,” in which a prisoner is suspended by his hands tied behind his back.
This leads to dislocation of the shoulder joints under the weight of the body. When a prisoner becomes so tired that he cannot hold himself upright, his body leans forward and breathing becomes very difficult.
Cold chamber
The CIA has six interrogation techniques that they are authorized to use, and one of them is actual torture. A cold cell is a so-called “enhanced interrogation technique” where a prisoner is forced to sit in front of an air conditioner for several hours, days, or even years. This practice was not limited to the CIA.
Shuanggui
In China, shuanggui is a form of false detention used by the Communist Party against people suspected of corruption. People are kidnapped and held in custody for up to 6 months until a verdict is reached: whether the detainee is guilty or not.
At this time, as some witnesses report, prisoners are tortured.
German chair
Torture was widely used during the war in Syria. One of the most popular ones that the authorities used against the rebels was the German chair. When a rebel was captured, he was seated on a metal chair. His arms and legs were attached to a metal seat, and the back of the chair swung back and down towards the ground.
This caused severe stress on the spine, neck and limbs, often leading to permanent damage and ruptures.
Cat of O'Nine Tails
The torture device, which is also known simply as the "cat", is essentially a whip with nine tails. Its "claws" can cause ragged rows of wounds. Sometimes small metal balls with spikes were also attached to the tails to make the torture even more painful.
This weapon first appeared in Ancient Egypt. Also still used as a form of punishment in Trinidad and Tobago. The phrase “letting the cat out of the bag” (making something secret obvious) originally had a literal meaning: pulling the whip out of the bag before flogging.
White torture
This type of torture, which is a form of emotional and physical torture, is perhaps the worst of all. Instead of beating, electrocuting, or locking a person in a box, the prisoner is tortured through sensory deprivation and isolation. The victim is locked in a windowless cell where everything is painted creamy white. He is fed white rice, which is served on a white plastic plate. If there is a need to go to the toilet, the prisoner slides a white piece of paper under the door to alert the guards, who wear special shoes designed to muffle the sound. The prisoner is forbidden to talk.
Ibrahim Nabavi, an Iranian journalist who suffered such torture in prison in his homeland, said the worst thing about white torture is that “you will never be free again” even after release.
