xvi. Opportunities for vocational training are quite limited. xvii. Minors in conflict with the law have no access to legal aid. xviii. The death penalty is still in the statute books. xix. The number of dedicated female prisons is inadequate. xx. There is no dedicated prison for juvenile girls. xxi. There is no legislation on alternative sentencing. xxii. The CPTA is also concerned about the many allegations of the existence of unofficial and secret places of detention in Mauritania where suspected terrorists are kept. Although the authorities approached on the issue denied the existence of such places, the African Commission remains concerned that no efforts have so far been made to investigate these allegations. The incommunicado detention of suspected terrorists who are only allowed sporadic visits by the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), is also a major concern to the African Commission. xxiii. The ineffectiveness of the legal aid regime in Mauritania and the limited access to detained persons by counsel is a major concern to the African Commission. The CPP only permits access to counsel for 30 minutes and only after the first period of detention has been extended. xxiv. There is no guarantee that all suspects are offered legal representation even in the case of minors. xxv. The CPTA delegation is also concerned about the ineffective legal aid regime and that efforts by the Bar Association to offer legal aid with the support of donors have been blocked at the level of the Ministry of Justice. xxvi. Corporal punishment is still retained as a form of lawful punishment in the statute books of Mauritania. Even though no longer practiced, the CPTA remains concerned that many inmates, especially women are held in jail for an indeterminate period because they have not been lashed. xxvii. The CPTA is very concerned about the disregard of the procedural safeguards against the risk of torture set out in the CPP- that no efforts are being made to hold officials who disregard these safeguards to account. 39 | P a g e