A/HRC/4/33 page 4 I. INTRODUCTION 1. The Special Rapporteur on the question of torture, Manfred Nowak, hereby submits his first report to the Human Rights Council, in accordance with General Assembly resolution 60/251. 2. Section II summarizes the activities of the Special Rapporteur undertaken between August and December 2006 (i.e. the period since the submission of his interim report to the General Assembly, document A/61/259). In Section III, the Special Rapporteur discusses the obligation of States parties to the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (the Convention) to establish universal jurisdiction, and Section IV contains a discussion on regional cooperation. Section V discusses the right of victims of torture to a remedy. In particular, the Special Rapporteur points to the obligation of States under article 14 of the Convention against Torture to, among other things, pay the costs of rehabilitation. He calls for the development of mechanisms whereby States found to be systematic violators would contribute to funds such as the United Nations Voluntary Fund for Victims of Torture. 3. The summary of communications sent by the Special Rapporteur from 16 December 2005 to 15 December 2006 and the replies received thereto from Governments by 31 December 2006 are found in addendum 1 to the present report. Addendum 2 contains a summary of the information provided by Governments and non-governmental organizations (NGOs) on implementation of recommendations of the Special Rapporteur following country visits. Addendum 3 is the report of the country visit to Jordan, and addendums 4 and 5 contain preliminary notes on the missions to Paraguay and Sri Lanka, respectively. II. ACTIVITIES OF THE SPECIAL RAPPORTEUR 4. The Special Rapporteur draws the attention of the Council to his second interim report to the General Assembly (A/61/259, paras. 6-43), in which he described his activities for the period from January to July 2006 (i.e. the period since the submission of his report to the Commission on Human Rights, document E/CN.4/2006/6 and addenda). The Special Rapporteur would like to inform the Council about the key activities he has undertaken since the submission of his report to the General Assembly, i.e. during the period August to December 2006. Communications concerning human rights violations 5. During the period 16 December 2005-15 December 2006, the Special Rapporteur sent 79 letters of allegations of torture to 35 Governments and 157 urgent appeals to 60 Governments on behalf of persons who might be at risk of torture or other forms of ill-treatment. Country visits Jordan 6. The Special Rapporteur undertook a visit to Jordan from 25 to 29 June 2006 and draws attention to the full report, including his findings and recommendations, contained in