CAT/OP/ROU/1 which was not available in any minority or foreign languages, including in facilities dedicated to foreign nationals. The delegation was, however, encouraged to see that LCD monitors providing access to national legislation and selected international instruments pertaining to detainees’ rights had been installed in common spaces of some of the prisons visited. 30. The Subcommittee recommends that the State party strengthen its efforts to fully implement its domestic legislation related to torture prevention. It recommends that Romania ensure that instructions be given to detention officers to safeguard the effective and systematic implementation of the right of each person deprived of liberty to be informed orally and in writing of the reason for his or her arrest and of his or her rights during detention, in a simplified form and in a language that they can understand, at the outset of detention. Such information should include any entitlement to pardon, commutation of sentences, parole, release and other forms of early release. It also recommends the production, dissemination and distribution of posters, booklets and other outreach materials for detainees with information on rights, expressed in clear, easy-to-read language.8 31. The delegation observed that many detainees interviewed had been strongly encouraged to confess upon arrest or during the initial stage of their detention in order to benefit from a shorter term of imprisonment, as provided for in articles 374 (4) and 396 (10) of the Criminal Procedure Code. While the Code requires corroborative evidence in the event of a confession, the delegation is concerned that, in practice, the above-mentioned provisions may lead to an overreliance of the law enforcement and justice sectors on confessions. 32. The Subcommittee recommends that Romania ensure access by detainees to a lawyer of their choice immediately after their arrest and that detainees have their lawyer present during interrogation. The State party should extend and strengthen the currently overstretched system of legal aid, so as to ensure effective and quality representation for all detainees, on an equal basis. 9 It should also consider amending the Criminal Procedure Code with a view to repealing any provision that may constitute an incentive to extract confessions. 33. The Subcommittee notes with concern that, under article 31 of Law No. 218 of 2002, persons can be detained administratively for 24 hours in police stations, without sufficient safeguards, which leaves detained persons vulnerable to ill-treatment and torture by police officers. In this regard, the Subcommittee notes the findings of the Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights concerning police abuse, especially against Roma (see A/HRC/32/31/Add.2, paras. 24–29), and the information shared by civil society organizations indicating that vulnerable and marginalized groups are most affected, including Roma, homeless persons, sex workers, drug users and transgender persons. Considering that most people interviewed provided their statements in relation to the crime upon arrest or during the initial stage of their detention, and given the high percentage of confessions, the insufficient safeguards during police detention are of grave concern. 34. The Subcommittee recommends that persons deprived of their liberty be provided with fundamental safeguards, including the rights to inform a third party of the detention and to have access to a lawyer promptly after their initial detention or arrest and after any transfer from one place of detention to another. 35. The Subcommittee notes that penal reform, which led to the adoption of the new Penal Code and new Code of Criminal Procedure (in force as of February 2014), introduced provisions for probation, early release measures and alternatives to detention. In view of the high recidivism rate, the Subcommittee welcomes the adoption in 2015 of a national strategy for social reintegration for the period 2015–2019 and measures being taken to 8 9 See Committee against Torture, general comment No. 2 (2008) on the implementation of article 2, para. 13, and the United Nations Standard Minimum Rules for the Treatment of Prisoners (the Nelson Mandela Rules), rules 53, 54 and 55 (1) and (3). International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, art. 14, and the Nelson Mandela Rules, rules 41 (3), 61 (1) and (3) and 119 (2). 7