Individual opinion of Committee member Guibril Camara 1. Under rule 108, paragraph 9, of its rules of procedure, the Committee against Torture may take steps to avoid a violation of the Convention and, therefore, an irreparable damage. This provision is a logical attribute of the competence bestowed on the Committee under article 22 of the Convention, concerning which the State party has made a declaration. By invoking article 22, the author of a communication submits an enforceable decision to the Committee's judgement, with due regard to the requirement for the exhaustion of domestic remedies. Therefore, if such decision is enforced despite the Committee's request for suspension, the State party renders article 22 meaningless. This particular case is basically a matter of lack of respect, if not for the letter, then for the spirit, of article 22. 2. Moreover, it is clear from the terms of article 3 of the Convention that the time to assess whether "there are substantial grounds for believing that [the author] would be in danger of being subjected to torture" is at the moment of expulsion, return or extradition. The facts clearly show that, at the time of his expulsion to India, there were substantial grounds for believing that the author would be subjected to torture. The State party therefore violated article 3 of the Convention in acting to expel the author. 3. Lastly, the fact that in this case, the author was not subsequently subjected to torture has no bearing on whether the State party violated the Convention in expelling him. The question of whether the risk 6 in this case, of acts of torture 6 actually materializes is of relevance only to any reparation or damages sought by the victim or by other persons entitled to claim. 4. The competence of the Committee against Torture should also be exercised in the interests of prevention. In cases relating to article 3, it would surely be unreasonable to wait for a violation to occur before taking note of it. [Done in English, French, Russian and Spanish, the French text being the original version.] 5. Communication No. 107/1998 Submitted by: K.M. [name deleted] [represented by counsel] Alleged victim: The author State party: Switzerland Date of communication: 23 February 1998 The Committee against Torture, established under article 17 of the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment, Meeting on 16 November 1999, 109