CAT/C/NER/CO/1 there, and to the case of Saadi Qadhafi, who, despite having been granted asylum by the Government of the Niger, and despite claims that he would face a serious risk of torture or ill-treatment if returned to Libya, was handed over to the Libyan authorities in 2014 on the basis of a mutual legal assistance agreement with the Libyan State. 18. The State party should ensure full respect for the principle of non-refoulement enshrined in its legislation and in article 3 of the Convention, and therefore refrain from expelling, returning or extraditing a person to another State where there are substantial grounds to believe that he or she would be in danger of being subjected to torture or illtreatment. The State party’s legislation on asylum and expulsion and all mutual legal assistance agreements to which it is a party should explicitly recognize the principle of nonrefoulement. Decisions to expel individuals should be subject to judicial review on a caseby-case basis and should carry a right of appeal that has suspensive effect. The State party should also include in its next periodic report information on the number of persons expelled or extradited, specifying the countries concerned, the number of judicial decisions overruling or cancelling expulsion orders on the basis of the principle of non-refoulement, and any other relevant measures taken. Investigations and prosecutions 19. While noting articles 222 et seq. of the Criminal Code, which establish punishments for violations of physical and mental integrity, and Act No. 2017-08, which prohibits illtreatment of persons deprived of their liberty, the Committee is concerned that there has been no judicial action taken in response to the numerous allegations of torture and illtreatment perpetrated in places of deprivation of liberty, including police and gendarmerie stations and short-stay prisons. It also notes the oral explanations provided by the State party regarding the death in detention of Souleymane Labo at the Maradi police station in 2014. However, the Committee is deeply concerned about allegations of torture and illtreatment committed against persons held in police custody, in particular the deaths in custody of Harouna Hinsa and Moussa Douka, and by the excessively lenient sentences handed down to perpetrators of acts of torture. The Committee is further concerned that the relevant provisions of the Criminal Code are subject to statutes of limitations, including in the unresolved Boultoungoure mass grave case of 1999, which is now time barred. Lastly, the Committee is concerned that amnesties have reportedly been granted to perpetrators of abuse, torture and ill-treatment, including members of the armed forces who escaped prosecution despite having committed brutal acts of repression during the Tuareg rebellion of the early 1990s, which violates article 4 of the Convention and creates a general climate of impunity (arts. 2, 4, 12 and 13). 20. The State party should: (a) Ensure that the competent authorities routinely launch an investigation whenever there are reasonable grounds for believing that an act of torture or illtreatment has been committed and see to it that suspects are duly brought to justice and, if found guilty, given sentences commensurate with the seriousness of their acts; (b) Ensure that torture is excluded from the scope of amnesty laws and ensure full respect for the absolute and non-derogable principle of the prohibition of torture and ill-treatment, in line with the Committee’s general comment No. 2 (2007) on the implementation of article 2; (c) Put in place an independent, effective and confidential complaints mechanism that is accessible to victims in all police custody facilities, prisons and places of deprivation of liberty; (d) Ensure that alleged perpetrators of torture or ill-treatment are automatically suspended from duty or reassigned during investigations and ensure that victims, their families and others acting on their behalf are not subjected to reprisals for exercising their legitimate right to redress; (e) Compile and disseminate updated statistics on the reports filed, investigations conducted, prosecutions launched and convictions handed down in cases involving torture or ill-treatment; GE.19-22137 5