(b) The significant decrease in the proportion of asylum-seekers who are immediately released without restriction into the community upon arrival and the detention of several asylum-seekers in remand prisons, who are not separated from other detainees; (c) The process of issuing a security-risk certificate under the Immigration Act, which could lead to a breach of article 3 of the Convention as the authorities may remove or deport a person deemed to constitute a threat to national security, without having to give detailed reasons or to disclose classified information to the person concerned; possibilities of effective appeal are limited; and the fact that the Minister of Immigration has to decide within three working days whether to remove or deport the person concerned; (d) Cases of prolonged non-voluntary segregation in detention (solitary confinement), the strict conditions of which may amount, in certain circumstances, to acts prohibited by article 16 of the Convention; (e) The low age of criminal responsibility, and the fact that juveniles are sometimes not separated from adult detainees and have been detained in police cells, owing to a shortage of Child, Youth and Family Residential Facilities; (f) The findings of the Ombudsman regarding investigations of alleged assaults by prison staff on inmates, in particular the reluctance to address such allegations promptly and the quality, impartiality and credibility of investigations. D. Recommendations 135. The Committee recommends that the State party: (a) Incorporate in its immigration legislation the non-refoulement obligation contained in article 3 of the Convention against Torture and consider establishing a single refugee determination procedure in which there is first an examination of the grounds for recognizing refugee status as contained in the 1951 Convention relating to the Status of Refugees, to be followed by the examination of other possible grounds for the grant of complementary forms of protection, in particular under article 3 of the Convention against Torture; (b) Ensure at all times that the fight against terrorism does not lead to a breach of the Convention and impose undue hardship on asylum-seekers, and establish a time limit for the detention of and restrictions on asylum-seekers; (c) Immediately take steps to review the legislation relating to the security-risk certificate in order to ensure that appeals can effectively be made against decisions to detain, remove or deport a person, extend the time given to the Minister of Immigration to adopt a decision and ensure full respect of article 3 of the Convention; (d) Reduce the time and improve the conditions of non-voluntary segregation (solitary confinement) which can be imposed on asylum-seekers, prisoners and other detainees; 63

Select target paragraph3

Connect to a paragraph
Connect to an entity
Disable highlights
Add to table of contents