A/HRC/19/61/Add.1
delayed. The Special Rapporteur further observes that prisoners are not necessarily
or sufficiently informed of their rights to make a complaint and that there are no
mechanisms in place to protect the complainants against reprisals by the prison
administration.7
95. The Special Rapporteur notes that the judicial system faces a great challenge to
deliver justice for past cases as quickly as possible while conducting effective and fair
investigations. He also recognizes that the severe shortfall of professional human
resources and technical capacity pose obstacles to the possibility of completing
criminal investigations in complex cases. The Special Rapporteur believes that silence
and lack of transparency about these limitations trigger frustration with and mistrust
of the system.
96. While welcoming the closure of the basement on the premises of the Ministry of
the Interior, the Special Rapporteur calls upon the Government to ensure that the
interrogation rooms within the headquarters of the Ministry of the Interior are
dismantled, and that the secrecy and the legacy of this building and the evidentiary
legacy of the torture facilities is finally revealed to the public. Such measures will be
essential among the steps the Ministry of the Interior will have to take to rebuild its
public image and trust.
97. While welcoming the dissolution of the so-called political police, and the arrest
and ongoing trial and prosecution of several security officers, including high-ranking
officials, the Special Rapporteur remains concerned that members of the State
Security Department known to be responsible for human rights violations have been
reintegrated in the system.
98. While welcoming the work of the fact-finding commission, the Special
Rapporteur calls on the authorities to ensure that the misperception that the
commission somehow supplants the judicial process of determining responsibility
and/or liability for violations is addressed and that the public knows when the findings
of the commission will be released.
B.
Recommendations
99. In a spirit of cooperation and partnership, the Special Rapporteur recommends
that the Government, with the assistance of the international community (the United
Nations and other actors), take decisive steps to implement the following
recommendations.
1.
Impunity
100.
The Special Rapporteur recommends that the Government:
(a)
Take further measures to expedite investigations into incidents of
excessive use of force, acts of torture and ill-treatment committed during and after the
revolution; ensure that those responsible for excessive use of force are held
accountable and that victims and their families are provided with effective redress
and reparative measures, including compensation and rehabilitation; ensure the
participation of victims in judicial proceedings and in the reparation process;
(b)
Undertake prompt and thorough investigations of all cases of torture
committed during the Ben Ali regime and launch public prosecutions immediately
7
The Special Rapporteur was told that if a detainee wishes to lodge a complaint, he is provided with
paper on which to write the complaint, which is then submitted to the prison administration.
19
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