E/CN.4/2000/9 page 12 Rapporteur, and his family, who were said to be facing imminent and forcible repatriation to Libya, where they may be at risk of torture. He was said to be a member of the reportedly illegal Libyan opposition group National Front for the Salvation of Libya (NFSL). The Australian Refugee Review Tribunal reportedly did not accept that he was a member of this organization and therefore rejected his claim. The authorities reportedly unsuccessfully attempted to deport the family on 1 December 1999, but the airline refused to carry them because of the physical condition of one of the asylum-seekers. The parents were allegedly verbally and physically abused at the airport while in the custody of the officials who were attempting to deport them. Follow-up to previously transmitted communications 32. By letter dated 4 January 1999, the Government replied to a communication sent by the Special Rapporteur on 3 September 1998 (see E/CN.4/1999/61, paras. 56-58). The Government informed the Special Rapporteur that the Royal Commission into Aboriginal Deaths in Custody was established on 16 October 1987 to investigate the deaths of 99 aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people in custody between 1 January 1980 and 31 May 1989. The Government indicated that the Commission was tasked with examining the circumstances of the deaths, action taken by the authorities and the underlying causes of indigenous deaths in custody, including social, cultural and legal factors. The Government informed the Special Rapporteur that the investigation concluded that the predominant cause of the high incidence of indigenous deaths in custody was the disproportionate rate at which Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people came into contact with the criminal justice system, reportedly because of the severely disadvantaged position of many indigenous people in society, socially, economically and culturally. The Commission made 339 recommendations to various levels of governments in Australia on a wide range of issues and in 1992 the Commonwealth Government allocated $400 million, mostly channelled through the Aboriginal and Torres Straight Islander Commission (ATSIC), to support 338 of the 339 recommendations. The Government indicated that the level of implementation of the recommendations had led to a reduction in the number of indigenous deaths in custody, as well as a growing awareness by custodial and medical staff of the treatment of indigenous prisoners. However, the Government informed the Special Rapporteur that it had acknowledged that the increasing over-representation of indigenous people in custody and their rate of contact with the criminal justice system needed to be addressed. To that end, a ministerial summit on indigenous deaths in custody was convened in July 1997. Strategic plans to address the over-representation of indigenous people in the criminal justice system are now being monitored. 33. The Government also responded to the two individual cases transmitted. 34. Concerning Daniel Yock, the Government denied that any torture occurred in this case. It indicated that an investigation was undertaken by the Criminal Justice Commission into his death, which relied heavily on two autopsy reports. The Commission found that the cause of his death was a combination of heart problems and drug intoxication. The Commission further found that there was insufficient evidence to lay criminal charges against anyone involved in his arrest and detention. A copy of the Criminal Justice Commission's Investigation findings and the Coroner's recommendation and notification were transmitted to the Special Rapporteur. The Government noted that the results of the inquiry were public and all evidence before the Commission had been given in open court.