A/HRC/31/57/Add.2 building where rows of male patients were chained to the walls and floors of their concrete cells, which were laid out like cattle stalls. Although employees refused to unlock the building, the Special Rapporteur was able to communicate with persons inside through the locked metal grates. Those inside pled for their release, with one individual reporting having been chained and locked-away for 4 months, and another for two weeks. Another person was found chained to the ground just outside the building, fully exposed to the sun and other elements. The Special Rapporteur recalls that these practices unequivocally amount to torture even if committed by non-State actors under conditions in which the State knows or ought to know about them. The reasons cited by the prayer camp authorities for the practices of chaining and shackling, such as preventing escape and aggressive behavior, do not fall within the scope of exceptions for temporary measures recognized by international standards. Local physicians and civil society also report cases of persons being shackled for years to “wait for God,” and released only at the whim of the camps’ leadership. In one case, it is reported that a chained man died after being bitten by a snake. Other abuses reported at prayer camps including beatings and other ill-treatment under the guise of ‘exorcisms.’ denial of food and treatment, being forced to ingest potent “healing” herbs, and verbal abuse. 73. In a separate building at Edumfa, the Special Rapporteur observed a number of women and children who, while not chained, were held in concrete cells and subjected to a prayer and fasting regime, which can reportedly last for up to two weeks. At least one child appeared to be under 10 years of age, while one person appeared to suffer from a neurological disorder requiring specialist care. In its June 2015 concluding observations on Ghana (CRC/C/GHA/CO/3-5), the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child confirmed that children with disabilities, especially those with mental disabilities, are victims to a higher extent of abuse, violence, stigma and exclusion, and that children with disabilities confined in psychiatric institutions and prayer camps are being subject to inhumane and degrading treatment due to cultural and traditional beliefs. Extremely disturbing reports that children with disabilities are sometimes sacrificed in rituals performed by “witch doctors” or “fetish priests” have also emerged. 74. Neither a lack of resources nor traditional practices or the fact that families tend to approach prayer camps voluntarily, may be invoked to excuse the perpetuation of practices amounting to torture and other ill-treatment, and the State has an urgent obligation to address these practices and replace them with an approach informed by science and the principles of free and informed consent, dignity, freedom from arbitrary detention and right to be free from torture and other ill-treatment. The Special Rapporteur heard of the development of a pilot project to build units to hold individuals in the Nyakumasi Prayer Camp, as an alternative to widespread chaining. While the need to develop alternatives to chaining is paramount, the seclusion and isolation of persons in cells would not improve their treatment or conditions, and assurances by Board authorities that this practice would not occur are appreciated. 75. The Special Rapporteur welcomes the Board’s approach of engaging with prayer camps to combat abusive practices and to promote accountability, and advocates for the establishment of an oversight board tasked exclusively with monitoring prayer camps and other privately-run treatment centers where persons are held involuntarily and ensuring that existing laws and proper safeguards are implemented. The Board reported some progress in taking an inventory of prayer camps and traditional healing centers throughout Ghana; deploying psychiatric nurses to at least one prayer camp to help administer medication; and plans to organize trainings for prayer camp leaders on the human rights of persons with disabilities, such as one held in Sunyani, Brong-Ahafo Region, last year. The Special Rapporteur heard that there is some willingness on the part of prayer camp leaders to work with authorities, and urges continued dialogue, with a view to ultimately shutting down prayer camps or at least eliminating their most harmful practices. 20