Inge Genefke &
Bent Sørensen’s
Anti-Torture Foundation
IInge Genefke & Bent Sørensen’s
Anti-Torture Foundation
Inge Genefke & Bent Sørensen’s Anti-Torture Foundation, commonly known as ATSF, is a non-profit foundation dedicated to supporting the fight against torture.
The Foundation was established in 2002 to continue the significant work carried out by Inge Genefke and Bent Sørensen in the fight against torture.
Inge Genefke (born 1938) is a Danish physician and a world-renowned pioneer in the fight against torture. In 1982, she founded DIGNITY (formerly RCT), and later the international network IRCT. Both organisations work to provide treatment and rehabilitation for survivors of torture. Her work began in the 1970s with Amnesty International, where she helped develop the first medical methods for documenting torture.
Through her life’s work, she transformed the fight against torture from a political issue into a global medical discipline. In recognition of her tireless humanitarian work, she received the Right Livelihood Award and has been nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize on several occasions.
Bent Sørensen (1924–2017) was a prominent Danish professor of surgery who dedicated his life to the fight against torture. An internationally recognised expert in burn treatment, he brought unique medical expertise to the global human rights movement. He played a key role as chairman of DIGNITY and was the first medical doctor to serve on both the UN Committee against Torture and the Council of Europe’s Committee for the Prevention of Torture.
Together with his wife, Inge Genefke, he helped establish medicine as a vital tool in the fight to expose torture and other abuses and to rehabilitate survivors around the world.
Areas of Support
The Foundation provides, among other things, funding for travel related to international work against torture, as well as direct funding for specific projects related to torture, including projects that promote the documentation, prevention and rehabilitation of torture survivors worldwide.
Every two years, the Foundation also awards the Inge Genefke Award, worth USD 10,000, to an individual who has made an exceptional contribution to the global struggle for a world free from torture.
Candidates for the award may be nominated by submitting a written nomination, including the reasons for the nomination (maximum one page), to the Foundation at administrator@atsf.dk.
Application
Applications are considered at the Foundation’s four annual board meetings, held in March, June, September and December.
Applicants will receive a response from the Foundation’s administration a few weeks after the meeting, informing them whether their application has been approved or declined.
Application Deadline
1 March / 1 June / 1 September / 1 December
Marianne C Kastrup
(Chair of the Board)
Consultant psychiatrist, Lic. Med., former senior consultant at the Department of Psychiatry, Hvidovre Hospital; former head of the National Knowledge Centre for Transcultural Psychiatry; former Medical Director of RCT (now DIGNITY); member of Amnesty International’s medical group; Expert Advisor to the European Committee for the Prevention of Torture and Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment, 1993–2009; and member of the WHO Expert Advisory Panel on Mental Health, 1987–2009.
Kirstine Amris
Physician, DMSc, specialist in internal medicine and rheumatology. Extensive clinical and research experience in interdisciplinary rehabilitation of torture survivors.
Employed at the Rehabilitation and Research Centre for Torture Victims (RCT) from 1992 to 2001, initially as a rheumatology consultant and later as head of the Research and Education Department at IRCT, the International Rehabilitation Council for Torture Victims.
Her research has focused on chronic pain among torture survivors, musculoskeletal consequences of torture, and interdisciplinary rehabilitation of torture survivors.
Anders Foldspang
Physician, Professor Emeritus, Lic. Med., DMSc. Areas of expertise include public health and social medicine, epidemiology, and epidemiological and statistical research methods.
Since 1982, he has worked as a scientific consultant for the Rehabilitation and Research Centre for Torture Victims (RCT), serving as a permanent consultant from 1986 to 2010. He chaired RCT’s Research Committee from 1996 to 1999 and has advised numerous projects at RCT, including PhD projects.
Sofie Danneskiold-Samsøe
MA and PhD in Anthropology from the University of Copenhagen and Associate Professor of Social Work at Copenhagen University College.
Her research and teaching focus on social work with survivors of torture, gender-based violence and honour-related social control. Her research is rooted in ethnographic studies of violence and is directed towards practical social work with survivors of violence.
Jakob v. H. Holtermann
MA and PhD in Philosophy and Associate Professor of Legal Philosophy at the Faculty of Law, University of Copenhagen, iCourts – Centre of Excellence for International Courts.
His research and teaching focus on legal philosophy and sociology of law, including international criminal courts and transitional justice following massive human rights violations, including war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide.
The Foundation is administered by Claus Bomhoff.
Inge Genefke & Bent Sørensen’s Anti-Torture Foundation
administrator@atsf.dk · Cookie policy
Inge Genefke and Bent Sørensen’s Anti-Torture Foundation was established on 28 October 2002.
CVR-nr27428932