E/CN.4/1997/7/Add.3 page 11 The individuals in question, however, were examined by the medical staff of the non-governmental organization Red de Apoyo , who found physical after-effects consistent with the events reported in the complaints. 30. Aníbal Roberto Ruiz Calderón was arrested by theatre of operations No. 1 personnel in November 1995 in La Esperanza shanty town, between Santa Rita sector and las Monas, State of Apure, on suspicion of contact with the Colombian guerrilla fighters. While in detention he was allegedly stripped, blindfolded and gagged, bound hand and foot and tied to a tree. In this position he was allegedly beaten unconscious. 31. All these cases were transmitted to the Government by the Special Rapporteur on various occasions. On 30 October 1996 the Rapporteur 8 transmitted a total of 33 cases, some of which were collective cases. 32. The government authorities with whom the Special Rapporteur met were unanimous in condemning the use of torture. The Minister for Foreign Affairs, for example, said that although the Government did not condone abuses, they might take place at the lower levels of society, partly due to the low cultural level of junior police officers. He also said that crime was a serious social problem that was partly fostered by the prevailing impunity. 33. From the legislative side, the members of the Sub-Commission on Human Rights and Constitutional Guarantees of the Chamber of Deputies indicated that many of the complaints they received were related to abuses by the police, including physical ill-treatment, which occurred on a daily basis, and that, although it was not government policy to inflict ill-treatment, there was negligence on the latter's part and covering up by the police. They said that during 1995 they had received complaints of 67 cases of ill-treatment alleging responsibility by the Metropolitan Police, 40 attributable to the National Guard, 24 to the DISIP and 24 to the PTJ. In addition, many more cases had been transmitted by the State legislative assemblies. Concerning the role of the Public Prosecutor's Office, they said that there should be a greater turnover of prosecutors assigned to specific police or prison centres, since these assignments often led to situations of collusion. 34. The Director of the PTJ said that its staff was insufficient for the large quantity of events of all types it had to investigate, and that there were times when the officers took the easiest way of speeding up the investigation. He did say, however, that although there were abuses, these were not institution policy and were not supported by the PTJ management. 35. The Metropolitan Police authorities said that abuses by the police have been reported more regularly in recent years and that the police encouraged citizens to lodge complaints. Police officers also know that complaints are investigated and that there is a risk of punishment, which has brought down the number of incidents of abuse. 36. The Commander-in-Chief of the National Guard said that expulsions by the Guard in cases of land invasion always took place at the request of the Governor or competent judicial authority, and always strictly within the bounds of the law. In addition, the National Guard always requested that a prosecutor should be present, precisely in order to guarantee legality.