38. In view of the foregoing, the Subcommittee recommends that: Police officers should receive clear, categorical and periodic instructions on the absolute and mandatory prohibition of any form of torture and ill-treatment and that such prohibition should be included in such general rules or instructions as are issued in regard to the duties and functions of police personnel. In accordance with the obligations entered into by the State party under articles 12 and 16 of the Convention against Torture, a prompt and impartial investigation is to be conducted wherever there are reasonable grounds to believe that an act of torture or ill-treatment has been committed. Such an investigation shall take place even in the absence of a formal complaint. All police stations and units in the country should have information available and visible to the public on the prohibition of torture and ill-treatment as well as on how and where to file complaints concerning such acts. With a view to reducing impunity, police officers who for good reason do not wear uniforms when carrying out police duties are obliged to identify themselves by name, family name and rank at the time of arrest and transfer of persons deprived of their liberty. As a general rule, police officers responsible for enforcing deprivation of liberty or who have persons deprived of their liberty in their custody should be identified in the appropriate registers. 39. The Subcommittee encourages the State party to maintain and step up measures to prevent torture and other illtreatment, as part of a comprehensive State policy. Measures should include extensive public awareness campaigns on this issue, and information campaigns on how and where to report cases. III.Torture and ill-treatment in the context of the protest demonstrations following the events of 28 June 2009 40.Before and during its visit, the Subcommittee received copious information on the treatment allegedly meted out to those taking part in demonstrations or who happened to be in the immediate vicinity. In some cases the Subcommittee received oral testimony from victims themselves, and many cases are described in the written documentation provided, for the most part, by NGOs. There were numerous incidents, for many marches and demonstrations were organized, in various parts of the country, and they were very often broken up with violence by the police and the army. Between 28 June and 15 October 2009 the NGO Comité de Familiares de Detenidos Desaparecidos de Honduras (Committee of the Families of Detained and Disappeared Persons in Honduras, COFADEH) recorded 133 cases of cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment; 21 cases of serious injury; 453 of injury from beatings; and 211 of injury caused by unconventional weapons. In a communication dated 2 November 2009, CPTRT indicated that, between 2007 and the first half of 2009, it had dealt with 2.5 cases of torture a month on average. This figure rose to 118.75 cases a month following the events of 28 June 2009. 41.The most frequently used techniques are tear gas, gunfire, sometimes hitting people, indiscriminate beatings anywhere on the body with wooden bats, rifles or cudgels, and mass arrests and transfer to police stations or other places that are not detention centres, such as stadiums or parks; all to the accompaniment of constant harassment including insults and threats. Many of the women arrested were subjected to sexual abuse and the Subcommittee heard of several cases of rape by the police. 42.In most cases, people are detained for breaking the curfew or the Police and Harmonious Social Relations Act and are released without charge after a few hours, once their personal details have been registered. Others are arrested and accused of offences such as sedition, illegal demonstration or damage to property. Sometimes release occurs following an application for habeas corpus that establishes that the detention was unlawful, or as a result of action by human rights organizations or the prosecutor’s office. Not all arrests are logged in police records. Contrary to applicable law, detainees not are read their rights, and in many cases are not permitted to contact their families, even if they are minors. Medical care for those injured is all but non-existent in places of detention, and only in serious cases do the police agree to a transfer to hospital for treatment. 43.These incidents left a number of people dead or injured from gunfire. In addition, several people detained during the demonstrations were reported missing. 44.In a memorandum dated 11 September 2009 to the Minister of Security, the Special Attorney for Human Rights mentioned the arrests that had taken place during the events of 28 June 2009. He indicated that officials of the Public Prosecutor’s Office had found that, in general, the police failed to apply the rules on arrest contained in article 282 of the Code of Criminal Procedure. The Special Attorney also told the Subcommittee about these omissions, and pointed out that the decree restricting the right to freedom of movement did not comply with the provisions of the Constitution, which meant that arrests made under that decree were unlawful. 45.In cases of mass arrest, human rights organizations usually go to the places of detention to check on the situation of the detainees, but such visits are not always welcomed or facilitated by the police officers in charge. These organizations also told the Subcommittee of acts of intimidation against them (anonymous phone calls, jamming of electronic systems, being followed in the street, surveillance of offices and homes, etc.). 46.The Subcommittee noted a significant degree of mistrust on the part of victims and their representatives towards the agencies responsible for protecting human rights, in particular the Office of the Attorney-General and the Office of the National Commissioner for Human Rights (CONADEH). This attitude appears to stem chiefly from a fear of retaliation due to the fact that senior officials of those agencies have publicly sided with the de facto Government. Many of the victims prefer to report their cases to nongovernmental bodies. The Subcommittee also received complaints that those agencies did not always visit places of detention to check on detainees’ situation. The Subcommittee also noted that the memory of the serious human rights violations that have occurred in Honduras in the past, and particularly during the 1980s, still weighed heavily on the collective consciousness, along with a fear of