BAPTISM BY FIRE FOR NEW UNIT DURING CLIMATE SUMMIT The police information was included in the investigation together with the full explanation submitted by the National Commission of the Danish Police to the Legal Affairs Committee in February 2010. NEW POLICE GUIDELINES In July 2010, the OPCAT Unit’s report was completed. It established that the climate cages provided sufficient heating, water as needed, the opportunity to visit the toilet within a reasonable period of time, access to telephone contact with the outside world and food for those waiting in the cages for some time. In addition, the climate cages were large enough for everyone to lie down on the mats handed out, and detainees were given written information about their rights. The conclusion was therefore that neither the conditions in the police climate cages nor the police procedures at the cages constituted an offence against basic human rights – as long as the cages were only used for short-term detention. However, on the basis of the OPCAT Unit’s inspection, the police changed the procedure for medical services so that at future detentions, detainees suffering from chronic illness will have access to their medication already at registration. By contrast, the police detention of the many people at Amagerbrogade was not acceptable. The OPCAT Unit recommended that at similar future events the police should follow different procedures to those at the COP15 demonstrations in several respects. The OPCAT Unit’s recommendations for the future were: –– that detainees should be given the opportunity to visit the toilet within a reasonable period of time –– that it was made regular practice to arrange water and something to sit on at events which may lead to mass detentions –– that medical competence should be provided at such events to minimise the risk of endangering the health of those detained/confined –– that at such events the police should carry out the necessary interrogations as quickly as possible so as to reduce the detention time to a minimum. At the end of November 2010, the Ministry of Justice replied that it endorsed all the OPCAT Unit’s recommendations and that the police would incorporate the recommendations into the guidelines for the police effort in connection with large demonstrations. 53