41 193. Article 5 of the American Convention provides that 1.Every person has the right to have his physical, mental, and moral integrity respected. 2. No one shall be subjected to torture or to cruel, inhuman, or degrading punishment or treatment. All persons deprived of their liberty shall be treated with respect for the inherent dignity of the human person. 194. The Commission has written that inhuman treatment is that which deliberately causes severe mental or psychological suffering, which, given the particular situation, is unjustifiable, and that "treatment or punishment of an individual may be degrading if he is severely humiliated in front of others 173 or he is compelled to act against his wishes or conscience.” The Commission has also observed that for treatment to be ‘inhuman or degrading’ it has to attain a minimum level of severity. The evaluation of this ‘minimum’ level is relative and depends on the circumstances in each case, such as the duration of the treatment, its physical and mental effects and, in some cases, the sex, age, and health of the 174 victim, his race, color, nationality, immigration status, and other factors. 195. The Inter-American Court, for its part, has held that degrading treatment is characterized by the fear, anxiety and inferiority induced for the purpose of humiliating and degrading the victim and 175 breaking his physical and moral resistance. As the Court wrote, the degrading aspect of the treatment 176 is exacerbated by the vulnerability of a person who is unlawfully detained. 196. In general terms, the Court has held that a person who has been illegally detained is in a state of greater vulnerability and therefore exposed to the potential risk that other rights might be violated 177 as well, such as the right to humane treatment and to be treated with respect for one’s dignity. 197. As for the physical integrity of persons deprived of liberty, the Commission has written that [...] the State, by depriving a person of his liberty, places itself in the unique position of guarantor of his right to life and to humane treatment. […] All this means that the act of imprisonment carries with it a specific and material commitment to protect the prisoner's human dignity so long as that individual is in the custody of the State, which includes protecting him from possible circumstances 178 that could imperil his life, health and personal integrity, among other rights. . 198. Similarly, the European Court has held that 173 IACHR, Merits Report No. 35/96, Case 10.832, Luis Lizardo Cabrera (Dominican Republic). February 19, 1998, paragraph 77, citing the European Commission on Human Rights, The Greek Case, 1969, 12 Y.B. Eur. Conv.on H.R. 12 [hereinafter “the Greek case”] 186. See also, IACHR, Report on Terrorism and Human Rights. OEA/Ser.L/V/II.116 Doc 5 rev. 1 corr. (2002), paragraph 156. 174 IACHR, Merits Report No. 35/96, Case 10.832, Luis Lizardo Cabrera (Dominican Republic). February 19, 1998, paragraph. 78, citing European Court of Human Rights, Ireland v. United Kingdom, paragraphs 162-163. See also, IACHR, Report on Terrorism and Human Rights. OEA/Ser.L/V/II.116 Doc 5 rev. 1 corr. (2002), paragraph 157. 175 I/A Court of Human Rights, Case of Loayza Tamayo v. Peru. September 19, 1997, Series C Nº 33, paragraph 57. 176 I/A Court of Human Rights, Case of Loayza Tamayo v. Peru. September 19, 1997, Series C Nº 33, paragraph 57, citing the European Court of Human Rights, Ribitsch v. Austria, Judgment of December 4, 1995, Series A No. 336, paragraph 36. 177 I/A Court H.R., Case of Baldeón García v. Peru. Merits, Reparations and Costs. Judgment of April 6, 2006. Series C No. 147, paragraph 119; Case of López Álvarez v. Honduras. Merits, Reparations and Costs. Judgment of February 1, 2006. Series C No. 141, paragraph 104; Case of Juan Humberto Sánchez v. Honduras. Preliminary Objection, Merits, Reparations and Costs. Judgment of June 7, 2003. Series C No. 99, paragraph 96. ECHR, Case of Ireland v. the United Kingdom. Judgment of January 18, 1978, Series A No. 25. paragraph 167. 178 136. IACHR, Report No. 41/99 (Merits), Case 11.491, Minors in Detention (Honduras), March 10, 1999, paragraphs 135 and