is not possible to verify the alleged facts, but the recurring nature of the complaints should be alarming enough. The CGLPL recommended to the Minister of Justice to carry out an evaluation of the ongoing practices in the penal institutions concerning searches, and to draft the directives necessary for a more homogeneous application of the Prisons Act. 3. The situation in detention centres for undocumented migrants is not improving at all The visits conducted by the Contrôleur général in administrative detention centres (CRA) are systematically second, or even third visits. With just a sole exception, caused by a change in the management of a CRA, the visits did not find any improvement in the detention conditions. The physical conditions of accommodation of detainees are unsatisfactory in several cases, certain rooms require a complete renovation, others in basements are cramped, cold and noisy; in other places, the treatment is rudimentary and in one building, only the administrative rooms are airconditioned and the protection against mosquitoes is not suited to the local conditions. In a few cases, in buildings that are otherwise in a good condition, the treatment of the detainees is close to that of imprisonment, where the detainee is only allowed outside rarely and where the detainees leave the accommodation building only for common meals and administrative formalities. The information provided to detainees on the functioning of the CRA is often lacking: there is no “welcome booklet”; the information issued by the OFII is not sufficient and several internal rules of life do not appear in the internal regulations, while the rest is not always displayed in a sufficient number of languages. The administrative detention centres constitute the category of places of deprivation of liberty in which the behaviour of the law enforcement officers is subject to the highest number of criticism. The criticism results from a lack of sufficient staff, which affects the respect of the rights of the detainees: therefore, visits were cancelled on the grounds that there were not enough officers to supervise the movement and the monitoring. However, most often, it is the professional practices that are questioned, by mails addressed to the CGLPL, by testimonies collected on site, especially by associations and sometimes by direct contact with the inspectors. In a CRA where the practices of the staff were already reported to the authorities and were subject to disciplinary proceedings, there was no reminder of the rules, for example on the consumption of alcohol, ethics or the presence of policemen within the detention area. In another place, there seems to be a certain routine that the prison administration department does not wish to disturb, even when its instructions are not followed; the treatment is not subject to any specific protocol and misconducts are often reported. In yet another place, the CGLPL received several complaints concerning the abusive behaviour of certain policemen. On site, mechanical and indifferent attitudes border on inhumanity, and an extreme lack of communication leaves several detainees completely disoriented. In one CRA, police violence and abusive placements in detention were reported. Physical violence has decreased, and one policeman was subject to criminal proceedings on the demand of the CRA commandant, and was transferred. 30

Select target paragraph3

Connect to a paragraph
Connect to an entity
Disable highlights
Add to table of contents