The CGLPL then flagged the most restrictive practices in terms of freedoms which include
such restraint methods as placement in a seclusion room and use of mechanical restraint instruments,
voicing particular concern over the situation of detainees in crisis, who are systematically subjected to
restraint methods. The CGLPL put forward recommendations aimed at improving the extent to
which the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities is taken on board in
mental health institutions, and implementation of its approach centred on human rights.
The CGLPL also addressed afresh the issue of prison overcrowding, on which
recommendations had been issued during the last UPR, focusing on alternative sentences and
promoting reintegration. It reiterated that the issue could not be dealt with solely from the prison
angle, and that simply building new prison places was not an effective solution. A fully-fledged public
policy involving all of the stakeholders in the criminal justice chain needs to be rolled out, along with
prison regulation mechanisms.
The Nelson Mandela Rules
After four years of consultation, the revision of all of the 1955 Standard Minimum Rules for the
Treatment of Prisoners was adopted at the end of 2015 by the United Nations General Assembly, and
renamed "the Nelson Mandela Rules". These now contain a more extensive section on the absolute
prohibition of torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment. What is more,
the importance and necessity of supervision of prisons is now recognised, along the lines of the
Optional Protocol to the Convention against Torture and other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading
Treatment or Punishment (OPCAT): the Rules recommend setting up a twofold system for regular
inspections of prisons, entailing internal or administrative inspections, and external inspections
conducted by a body independent of the prison, such as the NPM or international organisations.
In the context of promoting these Rules, the CGLPL first participated in a consultation of
experts organised by the Justice Section of the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime
(UNODC), bringing together representatives of prison administrations of the OSCE's Atlantic pillar,
as well as international associations and organisations. The CGLPL was the only NPM represented at
this high-level meeting, which aimed at establishing a tool enabling States to assess the compliance of
their national prison systems with the Nelson Mandela Rules, and thus facilitate their practical
application at national level.
It then shared its expertise at a regional meeting organised by the OSCE Office for
Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR), Penal Reform International and the UNODC in
Warsaw. The experts examined the content of a practical guide to the Nelson Mandela Rules for the
attention of prison administrations and their staff.
Participation in these discussions informed efforts to take on board the revised standards at
the CGLPL. In this context, thanks to the summer school organised by the Association for the
Prevention of Torture and University of Bristol, the subject could be delved into in greater depth: its
programme was drawn up in a bid to acquire technical knowledge on the main provisions of the
Nelson Mandela Rules so as to inform supervisory missions, and issue sounder recommendations.
Codification of international standards governing immigration detention
The Council of Europe's European Committee on Legal Co-operation (CDCJ) has conducted a
codifying exercise on a detailed set of immigration detention rules, based on international and
regional standards. However, because immigration detention law is incomplete, the codifying exercise
revealed a number of gaps: definition of places of detention, provision for vulnerable groups,
disciplinary problems, etc. In order to overcome this difficulty, the writers have decided to transpose
the European prison rules each time there is no corresponding standard. As such, the draft
instrument involved applying to detained migrants the rules established for prisoners, thereby
adopting a criminal justice approach to detention.
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