the way they were treated. 100.The SPT notes that the right of any detainee to submit a petition or appeal concerning their treatment, in particular in the case of torture or ill-treatment, to the authorities responsible for the administration of the place of detention, to higher authority and, when necessary, to appropriate watchdog or law enforcement authorities, constitutes a basic safeguard against torture. 101. The SPT recommends that staff assigned to police stations should systematically provide information to all persons deprived of their liberty about the right to file a petition or appeal concerning their treatment in custody. Every petition or appeal must be promptly dealt with and replied to without undue delay, and it must be ensured that detained persons do not suffer prejudice as a consequence. 102. The SPT also recommends that the Paraguayan authorities ensure that the right to file a complaint or appeal with respect to torture and ill-treatment can be exercised in practice and that the principle of confidentiality is duly respected. Police staff must not interfere with the complaints procedure or screen complaints addressed to the competent authorities, and must not have access to the content of the complaints. The SPT recommends that rules should be drawn up for the handling of complaints by police officers, covering the forwarding of complaints to the competent authorities and the duty to provide the necessary materials for drafting a complaint. 9.Working conditions and training of police staff 103.The SPT was repeatedly told by the police officers interviewed that they faced financial difficulties because of their low salaries, and that the State party did not provide them with the necessary tools to carry out their work, which meant that they had to buy their own uniforms, boots, weapons and notebooks, as well as pay for petrol for carrying out patrols. 104. The SPT considers that the financial hardship of police staff is conducive to corruption and therefore recommends that a review of police salaries should be carried out to ensure that they are appropriate. The equipment required for police staff to do their job must be provided by the authorities. 105.The government authorities interviewed by the SPT said that police officers lacked training, and that some did not even have a basic education. According to a report by the United Nations Special Rapporteur on the question of torture, the lack of training of police officers in techniques of obtaining evidence in criminal investigations meant that they relied heavily on confessions, which encouraged the use of torture and ill-treatment. Moreover, the police officers interviewed themselves said that they had received no training whatsoever in the custody of detainees. 106. The SPT recommends that police personnel and officials assigned to police stations and other detention centres should receive suitable training in guarding persons deprived of their liberty, including human rights training, and in the proper use of registers (see paragraph 74 (c) and (d) above). 10.System for supervising the police as a safeguard against torture and ill-treatment 107.According to information received from the police authorities, Paraguay does not have a system for supervising and monitoring the conditions of detention and treatment of persons deprived of their liberty. 108.The SPT considers that a proper system for monitoring and supervising the police constitutes an essential safeguard against ill-treatment. The lack of proper monitoring by senior police officers of the treatment of detainees may encourage ill-treatment on the part of some police officers. The SPT therefore recommends that the Paraguayan authorities should establish a system for the effective monitoring and supervision of the work of the police by senior police officers. 109.Even where ill-treatment is not the result of a direct order from senior officers, that does not exempt the latter from criminal responsibility for acts of torture committed or ill-treatment inflicted by their subordinates, if they knew, or should have known, that those acts occurred or probably occurred and did not adopt the reasonable and necessary measures to prevent them. The responsibility of police officers who commit acts of torture or inflict ill-treatment on detained persons, as well as the responsibility of senior officers who instigate, encourage, consent to or acquiesce in such acts, must be fully investigated both through internal police monitoring mechanisms and through competent prosecutorial and judicial authorities. 11.Material conditions 110.The SPT noted that, practically without exception, persons deprived of their liberty were held in very poor material conditions. The cells were generally in an appalling state of repair and extremely unhygienic. The sanitary facilities often did not work; sewage was found and a stench pervaded many such premises. In some places, the SPT was told that the detainees used the police staff toilets. However, when interviewed, the detainees all said that was not the case. 111.Both natural light and ventilation are seriously lacking. There are far from enough mattresses for the detainees, many of whom have to sleep on the floor. The SPT noted that the mattresses given to some detainees were badly worn. At about half the facilities, the water supply was sporadic at best. The SPT recalls that all cells must meet minimum standards of hygiene, having regard to climate, with particular reference to cubic content of air, minimum floor space, lighting and ventilation. (a)Cells 112.Police station No. 3 in Asunción had a single cell, measuring approximately 2 x 8 m, at the far end of which, separated by a wall,