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The Committee further urges the State party to take steps to ensure the necessary
funding so that each team from PRAIS or another organization can give effective
care to all those entitled to it. The Committee urges the State party to incorporate a
gender policy encompassing training and awareness-raising for the officials
responsible for dealing with the cases of victims of assault or sexual violence. The
Committee recommends that the State party increase its efforts in regard to
reparation, compensation and rehabilitation so as to ensure fair and appropriate
reparation for all victims of torture.
Impunity
19. The Committee is concerned at the continuing impunity of those who perpetrated the crime
of torture under the dictatorship and at the fact that suitable measures have not been taken to
prosecute and sentence them (arts. 2 and 12).
The State party should take the necessary steps to investigate, prosecute and impose
appropriate punishments on those who have committed human rights violations,
including torture. The Committee urges the State party to provide the courts with all
relevant information at its disposal in order to help them administer justice. The
Committee also urges the State party to repeal the provision contained in Act
No. 19.992 under which information on the practice of torture during the dictatorship
is to remain classified for 50 years.
Istanbul Protocol
20. The Committee welcomes the establishment by the Forensic Medical Service of a unit
devoted to the implementation of the Istanbul Protocol. It also welcomes the activities
undertaken by the State party to publicize the Protocol. The Committee is, however, concerned
that, according to some reports, such initiatives have not covered all medical personnel involved
in dealing with cases of torture and that due importance has not been placed on medical
examinations carried out in accordance with the Istanbul Protocol (arts. 10 and 12).
The Committee recommends that the State party redouble its efforts to ensure that
all medical personnel involved in the detection of cases of torture are aware of the
content of the Istanbul Protocol and are trained in its application. The Committee
also recommends that the State party take the necessary steps to ensure that reports
prepared in accordance with the Protocol are widely disseminated among medical
professionals dealing with cases of torture.
Conditions of detention
21. The Committee notes the efforts made by the State party to improve conditions in prisons,
especially in respect of infrastructure, including the construction of new facilities. The
Committee is, however, concerned about reports it has received regarding the persistence of
shortcomings in the prisons, particularly with regard to material conditions, overcrowding, and
mistreatment and the use of unjustified punishments in enforcing the disciplinary regime
(art. 16).