CAT/C/MDV/CO/1 14. The State party should align its penal legislation concerning minors in conflict with the law with the provisions and rules contained in international standards, in particular with the Convention, and should repeal all provisions that contravene the Convention. Human Rights Commission of the Maldives 15. While recognizing the efforts undertaken to date by the Human Rights Commission of the Maldives to receive and investigate complaints of torture and ill-treatment, the Committee is concerned that the Commission has submitted only four cases involving allegations of torture to prosecutors, three of which were returned on grounds of insufficient evidence. The Committee is also concerned that budget constraints have reportedly prevented the Commission from hiring an in-house medical expert and at the fact that it has not obtained A status accreditation from the Global Alliance of National Human Rights Institutions on several grounds, including concern that it may be interpreting its mandate in a manner inconsistent with international human rights law, particularly with regard to recognized protection against all forms of cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment, and with regard to the founding legislation that provides that all members of the Commission must be Muslim (art. 2). 16. The State party should take measures to increase the resources and strengthen the capacity of the Human Rights Commission of the Maldives, in accordance with the principles relating to the status of national institutions for the promotion and protection of human rights (the Paris Principles) and the guidelines of the Global Alliance of National Human Rights Institutions. Absolute nature of the prohibition of torture 17. The Committee is seriously concerned that many allegations of torture were reported in connection with actions taken by the Maldives Police Service and the Maldives National Defence Force during the state of emergency introduced by the previous Government on 5 February 2018, despite the fact that article 255 (b) (12) of the Constitution stipulates that measures adopted during a state of emergency cannot restrict article 54 of the Constitution, which prohibits torture, and that section 16 of the Anti-Torture Act stipulates that a state of war, political unrest, increased rate of crime, or state of emergency cannot excuse or justify acts of torture, cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment (arts. 1, 2, 4 and 10). 18. The Committee recommends that the State party disseminate to all authorities information on the absolute nature of the prohibition of torture and the commitment to uphold the prohibition of torture in practice, including during states of emergency. Appropriate penalties for torture 19. The Committee welcomes the adoption of the Anti-Torture Act, which establishes torture as a separate criminal offence, includes accomplice liability and takes precedence over all other national laws in conflict with the Act, including the Penal Code. However, the Committee notes with concern that the Act appears to contemplate imprisonment for torture only in cases in which victims suffer injuries necessitating at least 90 days’ hospitalization (arts. 1, 2, 4 and 16). 20. The State party should revise the Anti-Torture Act to ensure that it provides for punishment commensurate with the gravity of the offence of torture and does not condition punishment on the duration of the victim’s hospitalization, noting that some forms of torture may not inflict physical suffering at all. Statute of limitations and accountability for acts of torture 21. The Committee is concerned that the first amendment to the Penal Code has introduced provisions that may amount to the introduction of a statute of limitations for charges under the Anti-Torture Act. In that regard, the Committee draws the State party’s attention to paragraph 5 of its general comment No. 2 (2007) on the implementation of article 2 of the Convention, in which it states that amnesties or other impediments which preclude or indicate unwillingness to provide prompt and fair prosecution and punishment 5