CAT/C/SEN/CO/3 Extraction of confessions 13. The Committee takes note of the State party’s assertion that judges, who have supreme authority to weigh the evidence, cannot attach any value in a trial to confessions obtained under torture or duress. However, the Committee regrets that the Senegalese Code of Criminal Procedure contains no explicit provision to this effect and that the State party has provided no information on cases in which the courts have actually ruled as inadmissible confessions obtained under torture (arts. 2 and 15). The State party should ensure that, whenever a persons claims to have confessed under torture, such confessions are not invoked as evidence in the judicial proceedings and a thorough investigation is conducted into the claim. The Committee encourages the State party to amend its law so as to explicitly prohibit the use as evidence of any statement made under duress or as a result of torture. Violence against women 14. While noting the measures taken by the State party to combat all forms of violence against women, the Committee remains deeply concerned about the persistence in the State party of domestic violence, female genital mutilation, sexual abuse, rape and forced marriages. The Committee regrets that the State party has not provided information on the remedies and compensation, including rehabilitation, made available to women victims of violence (arts. 2, 12, 13 and 16). The State party should: (a) Continue to publicize Act No. 99-05 of 29 January 1999 on the penalization of the crimes of rape, excision, assault and battery, and incest, and to provide more information on the project to set up a national observatory on violence against women; (b) Step up efforts to prevent, combat and punish all forms of violence against women and children, by applying domestic laws and international conventions, and to run awareness and information campaigns for the general public and law-enforcement officers. The State party should investigate all allegations of such violence, prosecute and punish the perpetrators and offer victims effective protection and immediate redress; (c) Ensure that the programme to combat gender violence and to promote human rights, and the related national action plan, include access to shelter, medical and psychological assistance, and reintegration programmes. The State party should provide further information on this programme and on the implementation of the second national action plan to hasten the end of the practice of excision (2010–2015). Violence against children 15. The Committee remains concerned about the lack of information and statistics on the measures taken by the State party to combat practices such as the sale, prostitution and trafficking of minors. While noting the adoption of the strategic plan for the education and protection of children in Koranic schools (daaras), the Committee remains deeply concerned about the living conditions of young students (talibés), who suffer from illtreatment and economic exploitation and are often made to beg on behalf of their masters. The Committee also remains concerned about the reported persistence of corporal punishment in Senegal (arts. 11 and 16). The State party should: GE.13-40312 5