CAT/OP/MNG/1 B. Allegations of ill-treatment and torture 25. The Subcommittee emphasizes that public officials committing acts of torture or illtreatment must be promptly brought to justice and, if convicted, punished with sentences which reflect the gravity of the offence and that victims must be provided with effective remedies, including health and rehabilitation services. Furthermore, the State party should ensure that judges, prosecutors, health workers and others working in spheres relating to the documentation and investigation of torture and ill-treatment receive adequate training on the Manual on the Effective Investigation and Documentation of Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (the Istanbul Protocol) and international standards relating to torture and ill-treatment, with particular attention given to the appropriate classification of cases of torture and to the performance of specialized medical examinations.14 26. The Subcommittee is concerned that, in 2014, the special investigative unit, previously located within the General Prosecutor’s Office, was disbanded and its functions transferred to the Independent Authority against Corruption. The Subcommittee is concerned that the current model, whereby acts of torture and ill-treatment allegedly committed by public officials is now being investigated by public officials themselves, is more akin to a form of peer investigation, lacking in independence and impartiality and thus failing to ensure effective oversight. 27. The Subcommittee is concerned that this change has made it less likely that effective investigations will take place, thereby reducing the number of criminal cases brought and making it less likely that complaints will be lodged, which, taken together, increases the risk of impunity. 28. The statistical data appear to support those concerns, given that, since 2014, there has been a decline in the number of investigations initiated and only one public official has been convicted and imprisoned for ill-treatment of detainees.15 The Subcommittee shares the concern already expressed by the Committee against Torture on this point (CAT/C/MNG/CO/2, para. 17). 29. The Subcommittee recommends that the State party reinstate an independent investigation unit, within the General Prosecutor’s Office, that is responsible for investigating acts of torture and ill-treatment by public officials, including the police. The State party should also ensure that all investigations are independent, impartial and effective and free of any connection between the investigators and the alleged perpetrators (CAT/C/MNG/CO/2, para. 16). C. Complaint mechanisms 30. The Subcommittee was informed by both detainees and officials that complaints of ill-treatment by detainees are first addressed and considered by staff working within the detention facility in question and are reviewed before being forwarded to the appropriate external complaint mechanisms. In practice, most letters are subject to a form of censorship, and the Subcommittee therefore takes the view that there is no effective means of submitting complaints for external scrutiny. This reflects the concern already expressed by the Committee against Torture (CAT/C/MNG/CO/2, para. 18 (a)), which the Subcommittee shares. 31. The Subcommittee recommends that the State party put in place effective mechanisms which will allow detainees to confidentially 16 and directly submit complaints concerning ill-treatment, without any form of internal (or external) 14 15 16 Committee against Torture, general comment No.3 on implementation of article 14 by States parties, para. 35. Information provided by the authorities during the final meeting on 19 September 2017. United Nations Standard Minimum Rules for the Treatment of Prisoners (the Nelson Mandela Rules), rule 57. 7