19 Selected topics from 2018 The UN Committee against Torture critical of Norway’s use of isolation This year, the UN Committee against Torture criticised the Norwegian authorities for the way in which persons deprived of their liberty were treated. Among other things, the committee expressed concern about the extent of long-term isolation in prisons, which often occur because of a lack of resources. According to the committee, the use of solitary confinement of inmates with serious mental health conditions is violates human rights standards and should be abolished. The UN Committee against Torture based its assessments on Norway’s report on the implementation of its obligations under the UN Convention against Torture, and an oral dialogue between Norwegian government representatives and the committee that took place in Geneva in spring 2018.1 A number of Norwegian institutions and non-profit organisations also submitted supplementary information. The National Preventive Mechanism (NPM) provided a written submission to the committee on key findings from visits it conducted under its prevention mandate. The NPM also attended a preliminary meeting with the members of the committee and attended the hearing in Geneva.2 Major concern about the use of isolation The UN Committee against Torture highlighted several problematic circumstances relating to the use of isolation in Norway. The committee was concerned about long-term isolation in prisons and the increase in the number of registered administrative decisions on isolation, often on grounds of circumstances relating to the prison premises or staffing. The committee was also concerned that practices which constituted de facto isolation were not registered as individual decisions that could be appealed. The committee pointed out that legal requirements for the use of isolation were not sufficiently precise, and that ambiguous requirements for making a decision on isolation may lead to measures that amount to violations of the UN Convention against Torture. 1 The UN Committee against Torture, concluding observations for Norway’s eighth periodic report on implementation of its obligations under the UN Convention Against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment, 5 June 2018, CAT/C/NOR/CO/8. 2 More information about the reporting process and the NPM's input is available here (in Norwegian only): https://www.sivilombudsmannen.no/aktuelt/rapporterer-til-fn-under-horingen-av-norge-i-geneve/