CAT/OP/BEN/3 (a) Abomey civilian prison 44. The Abomey prison, which has a maximum capacity of 200, housed 912 inmates, of whom 832 were men, 72 were women and 8 were minors. According to the deputy director, there were 12 members of staff, in addition to a military unit that provided security outside the prison. The Subcommittee is deeply concerned about the appalling conditions of detention at the Abomey prison, which had deteriorated since its 2008 visit. Chronic overcrowding affected all the buildings but the one for minors. The Subcommittee was especially struck by the situation in building 8, which housed 91 detainees in its 38 square metres, or 2.4 people per square metre. The considerable overcrowding resulted in a lack of privacy, and the buildings were old and in disrepair. The Subcommittee noted with concern the dreadful latrines and troubling sanitary conditions. (b) Cotonou civilian prison 45. At the time of the visit, the prison, which had 14 buildings and a capacity of 400, had 1,140 inmates, including 316 convicted prisoners, 398 persons under investigation and 426 accused persons. The prison also housed 66 women, 3 infants and 19 other minors, including a girl. The staff was composed of 26 gendarmes divided into one team on duty and one on standby, which operated in alternation. They were supplemented by 50 members of the military, who rotated in and out and provided external security. Four or five health-care workers staffed the infirmary under the supervision of a head nurse. 46. The Subcommittee noted with concern that, although overcrowding had fallen since 2008, it was still considerable, with an occupancy rate of nearly 300 per cent. It noted with concern that the prison was divided into two parts: the so-called big yard and small yard. While the conditions of detention in the small yard were better, the conditions in the big yard were unsatisfactory and did not meet the requirements established by the Nelson Mandela Rules. Some of the cells in the buildings on the big yard were overcrowded. Building G was in a state of chronic overcrowding and great squalor. Some detainees, who had no mattresses, slept on mats. The toilets were also in an appalling state. The Subcommittee’s interviews with inmates revealed that the amount and quality of the food were inadequate. The Subcommittee remains concerned about the poor conditions of detention in this prison. (c) Akpro-Missérété civilian prison 47. At the time of the Subcommittee’s visit, the Akpro-Missérété civilian prison, which had a capacity of 1,000, housed 581 inmates, of whom 64 were persons under investigation and 517 were convicts, including 14 sentenced to death and 12 sentenced by the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda. According to the prison authorities, the staff included 16 guards, reinforced by 10 members of the military, who provided security outside the prison. In addition, civilian staff members included a permanent nurse, a clerk and a secretary. Some buildings were already in a noticeable state of disrepair. The conditions of detention in the section housing the prisoners sentenced by the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda were very good. In the other sections, the prisoners lived in relatively hygienic conditions and had access to water, toilets and showers inside the buildings. 2. Separation of detainees 48. The Subcommittee observed that prisoners were separated by age and sex in the Abomey and Cotonou prisons. It remains concerned that the State party has not yet put into practice the principle of separating detainees by detention category in the prisons it visited. Nevertheless, the Subcommittee noted that, in the Akpro-Missérété prison, the death-row inmates were separated from other prisoners. 3. Record-keeping 49. The Subcommittee observed that the prisons had several registers, which were generally well maintained and contained relevant information. It is still concerned about the poor record-keeping at the Abomey civilian prison, where it found that the registers were in 8 GE.18-16165