Checklist Country selection During visit • • Plan and coordinate among NGOs before meeting with SPT members to ensure equal speaking time and that information is not duplicated • Focus on new information and not what is already in NGO reports submitted to the SPT during the preparation phase • Leave sufficient time for dialogue with the SPT members and for answering specific questions Submit short and focused information clearly identifying the expected benefits of an SPT visit to your country at least two months in advance of country selection, which takes place in November each year • Clearly indicate what type of visit would be relevant (full visit, follow-up, NPM advisory visit?) • Lobby your own government to invite the SPT Visit preparation Follow up • Submit information to the SPT well in advance of the visit – contact the SPT Secretariat for informal deadlines • Promote publication of visit report through advocacy and possibly access to public information lawsuits • Information submitted should aim at helping the development of the visiting agenda (i.e. which places of detention to visit) and provide the SPT members with the necessary detailed contextual information about specific places of detention to enable more effective visits • Protect detainees against reprisals including by being present in places of detention visited by SPT during highrisk periods (right after an SPT visit has finished and right after the SPT visit report is submitted to the government). • Clearly indicate specific concerns such as problematic practices, detention facilities or regions • Engage with the government on implementing concrete recommendations to the extent that this is politically feasible. • Organise pre-mission seminars, if possible with the participation of an SPT member, to better prepare all stakeholders for the visit • Submit follow-up information to the SPT on implementation of the recommendations and advocate with your government to engage constructively with the SPT in the follow-up stage. Working with the UN Subcommittee on Prevention of Torture: A practical guide for NGOs engaging with SPT country visits 17