A/HRC/22/53/Add.2 I. Introduction 1. The Special Rapporteur on torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment, Juan E. Méndez, conducted a visit to Morocco from 15 to 22 September 2012, at the invitation of the Government. He also visited Laâyoune, Western Sahara, on 17 and 18 September 2012. 2. The Special Rapporteur met with the Ministers of Foreign Affairs, Justice, the Interior and Health; the General Delegation for Prison Administration and Reintegration and the Office of the Crown Prosecutor-General before the Court of Cassation. He also met with representatives of the Ministry of Youth and Sports, the Department of Criminal Affairs and Pardons, the General Prosecution at the Court of Cassation, and the Supreme Institute of Magistracy; representatives of the General Directorate of National Security; the Ministry in Charge of Relations between Parliament and Civil Society; the Delegate and personnel of the Interministerial Delegation for Human Rights and the President and members of the National Human Rights Council (CNDH), regional offices of CNDH and former members of the Equity and Reconciliation Commission. He also met with representatives of United Nations agencies, non-governmental organizations and victims of torture and their relatives. 3. In Laâyoune, Western Sahara, the Special Rapporteur met with the region’s ―Wali‖ and representatives of the Ministries of Health, Justice and Liberties, Youth and Sports, the General Directorate of National Security, the Royal Gendarmerie, the General Delegation for Prison Administration and Reintegration and the regional commission of CNDH. In addition he met with representatives of the Sahrawi population, representatives of civil society organizations and victims of torture and their relatives. He also met with the Special Representative of the Secretary-General, Head of the United Nations Mission for the Referendum in Western Sahara (MINURSO). 4. The Special Rapporteur thanks the Interministerial Delegation for Human Rights for facilitating his visit and expresses his appreciation to the Government for providing him with unimpeded access to all detention facilities in accordance with the terms of reference for fact-finding missions by special rapporteurs (E/CN.4/1998/45, appendix V). 5. The Special Rapporteur shared his preliminary findings with the Government on 22 September 2012, at the conclusion of his visit, and on 23 November the Government provided comments on the end of mission statement. The Special Rapporteur shared an advance version of the report and on 19 February 2013the Government provided comments, which were taken into consideration before the report was finalized. II. Legal framework A. At the international level 6. Morocco is a party to the majority of United Nations human rights treaties prohibiting torture and ill-treatment, including the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment, the Convention on the Rights of the Child, the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination, the International Convention on the Protection of the Rights of All Migrant Workers and Members of Their Families, the Convention of the Rights of Persons with Disabilities and the Protocol thereto, the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women 4