Report on the periodic visit to Switzerland in April 2015 and response of the Swiss authorities (treatment and conditions of detention in police establishments and prisons, life imprisonment, civil and forensic psychiatric establishments) 40. The vast majority of persons detained by the police stated that they had been correctly treated. However, the CPT is extremely concerned by the phenomenon of police brutality which still appears to exist in the canton of Geneva, carried out in particular by the members of the drugs task force. The report details several allegations of police violence involving punches, kicks and truncheon blows, which were at times inflicted on suspects who were blindfolded. The CPT recommends an in-depth and independent investigation into the methods used by this task force. Measures should also be taken to substantially improve the access to a lawyer of all persons deprived of their liberty and the right to inform a relative from the very outset of any custody. The material conditions found in the eleven police establishments visited around the country were satisfactory overall. Nevertheless, the CPT considers that, due to their small size, some of the cells in the Geneva police headquarters and Pâquis police station (Geneva) should only be used for short periods. In their response, the Swiss authorities state that criminal investigations have been opened with respect to members of the Geneva drugs task force and that some operational methods have been reviewed. They further indicate that the CPT’s recommendations regarding material conditions will be taken into account. 41. As regards prisons, detention conditions were very good on the whole at “La Promenade” (la Chaux-de-Fonds), “La Farera” and “La Stampa” (Lugano) and Schwyz Prisons. They contrasted with Champ-Dollon Prison which still suffers from a serious overcrowding problem and had an occupancy rate of around 190% at the time of the visit. The report calls upon the Geneva authorities to remedy this problem definitively, in particular by developing alternatives to imprisonment. The CPT also recommends that all the sanitary installations of cells occupied by more than one person be fully partitioned. In their response, the authorities announce that the Geneva canton was in the process of building new prison premises to reduce the overpopulation at ChampDollon. Measures were also being taken in several establishments visited to remedy the problem of unpartitioned toilets. At Champ-Dollon Prison, allegations were received of ill-treatment by prison officers and violence between inmates in cells. In other prisons, relations between prisoners and staff seemed appropriate, and violence did not appear to be a major problem. The authorities indicate in their response that measures will continue to be taken at Champ-Dollon to decrease the level of violence by staff and between inmates. The report underlines that most of the remand prisoners awaiting sentencing had a poor detention regime and generally spent 23 hours a day confined to their cell. They were also cut off from contact with the outside world (no phone calls or visits), often for several weeks or even months at a time. In the CPT’s view, it is not acceptable to leave prisoners without activities or cut them off from the outside world for lengthy Publication highlights ► Page 23