E/CN.4/2002/77/Add.2 page 11 (b) Chapter I, article 2.3, of the National Charter, reading: “No person shall be subject to any kind of moral or physical torture, or to any inhuman, degrading or humiliating treatment, under any circumstances. Any confession or utterance obtained under torture, threats or persuasion shall be null and void. An accused shall not be subjected to physical or moral harm. The law guarantees punishment of those who commit torture or physically or psychologically harmful acts”; (c) Regarding those who commit torture: acts of torture did not fall within the jurisdiction of the State Security Court, and their perpetrators would therefore not appear to be covered by article 1, paragraph 3, of Legislative Decree No. 10/2001, which uses the criterion of the Court’s jurisdiction to determine the scope of application of the amnesty; (d) One may therefore deduce that, applicable statutory periods of limitation notwithstanding, because acts of torture are covered by the ordinary law their perpetrators cannot claim that proceedings against them cannot be entertained by virtue of article 3 of Legislative Decree No. 10/2001, since that article applies only to judicial proceedings based on the Legislative Decree. 24. In actual fact, however, the delegation had the impression during its interviews that the prevailing opinion in many parts of civil society is that, the current process being still so fragile, priority should be given less to judicial proceedings of this kind than to the removal from office of Bahraini or foreign police officers to whom acts of torture are manifestly attributable. As just mentioned, mainstream opinion puts the highest priority on victims’ right to compensation, inter alia for torture, and in particular to medical care with specific physical and psychological attention. 3. Return home of exiles 25. The return, announced in the interests of national reconciliation, took place in phases depending on the legal status of the various categories of people concerned. It is now complete, in the sense that to the delegation’s knowledge the only people continuing to live abroad are those exiles who have, for the time being, given up the idea of returning to Bahrain for personal reasons (family, career etc), and they – according to the authorities – can return later to settle permanently or stay as long as they like. 26. The few difficulties that the delegation did come across related to the issuance, renewal or return of passports, and these matters have been put before the Shura Council’s Human Rights Committee. 27. The question of the cancellation of international search warrants, which is linked to the effects of the amnesty, was raised at the hearing granted to the delegation by the Foreign Minister in view of its international or, rather, bilateral ramifications. Lists of (now amnestied) individuals were previously sent to neighbouring countries (chiefly Saudi Arabia and Kuwait). Just before the delegation’s visit, a person mentioned on one such list had been imprisoned in Kuwait. The Minister, who knew of the problem, assured the delegation that instructions had been given to cancel the lists, and that odd delays here and there were due solely to the fact that they were being handled bilaterally.