E/CN.4/1994/31 page 39 present with truncheons and put handcuffs on the five Christians from Ankang, two of whom were women. The Ankang Christians, including Lai Manping, were then repeatedly beaten by police. The local Christians were reportedly forced to take part in the beating, under threat of being beaten themselves. The Ankang Christians were then held for eight days in a local police station. Lai Manping was allegedly in a very bad state owing to the beatings and was released when police realized he might die in custody. He crawled a few kilometres away from the police station and died shortly after being found by local farmers. 168. On 28 November 1993 the Government reiterated the information provided on 8 May 1993. 169. Liu Gang, a former student leader imprisoned at the Lingynan No. 2 labour-reform detachment in Liapning prison, was reported to be in very poor health as the result of continuous ill-treatment and harsh conditions of detention. Despite the fact that he suffered from heart and stomach trouble, psoriasis and a prolapse of the anus, he had reportedly been denied appropriate medical treatment. It was further reported that Liu Gang was subjected to severe ill-treatment, including electric shocks, after seeing his relatives on 2 October 1992, allegedly for telling them how he was being treated. (25 May 1993) 170. Lodoe Phuntsok, a security assistant at the Lhasa city hospital and the Bharkor local police station, was reportedly arrested on 23 May 1993 for suspected involvement in "counter-revolutionary" activities and taken to the Seitru (Sei Chu or fourth unit), detention centre in Sangyip, north-east of Lhasa. (13 September 1993) 171. On 25 October 1993 the Government replied with respect to this case that Lodoe Phuntsok had been detained on 20 May 1993 by the Tibet Autonomous Region public security organs for engaging in unlawful activities with the objective of dividing the country and overthrowing the Government. As he had acknowledged his guilt and his conduct had been good he had been released. He had received good treatment while under investigation. Observations 172. The consistency of the reports reaching the Special Rapporteur and his predecessor over the years compels acknowledgement of the serious grounds for concern about the persistence of an extensive problem of torture and severe ill-treatment of prisoners in various parts of China, despite the existence of legal provisions aimed at repressing it. The Special Rapporteur is aware of the relevant conclusions and recommendations of the Committee against Torture (A/48/44, paras. 423-429) and associates himself with these, in particular the recommendations aimed at preventing prolonged incommunicado detention and bringing to justice persons responsible for torture. The Special Rapporteur recommends that, in accordance with the Standard Minimum Rules for the Treatment of Prisoners, and the Body of Principles for the Protection of All Persons under Any Form of Detention or Imprisonment, resort to prolonged solitary confinement and the use of shackles should be abandoned. Colombia