CAT/C/ATG/CO/1
(d)
Ensure that victims of violence against women, including child victims,
obtain appropriate redress, including medical and legal services, as set out in the
Committee’s general comment No. 3.
Corporal punishment
39.
The Committee is concerned that provisions in the Corporal Punishment Act 1949
and the Prison Act 1956 permit flogging for breach of prison discipline. While noting that
corporal punishment of children is prohibited under the Child Justice Act 2015 as a
sentence for a crime, the Committee regrets that corporal punishment is lawfully
administered at home and in schools, day-care settings and penal institutions (art. 16).
40.
The Committee calls on the State party to explicitly prohibit corporal
punishment in all settings and to repeal all the provisions in domestic legislation that
permit corporal punishment in any setting.
Trafficking in persons and forced labour
41.
While welcoming the amendment in 2015 to the Trafficking in Persons (Prevention)
Act 2010, the Committee is concerned at the absence of prosecutions and convictions under
this law, and regrets that trafficking for sexual exploitation and forced domestic labour
remains widely prevalent (arts. 2, 12 and 16).
42.
The Committee urges the State party to:
(a)
Effectively implement the anti-trafficking legislation to combat human
trafficking and forced labour;
(b)
Ensure that all allegations of trafficking are promptly, thoroughly and
impartially investigated; that those accused are prosecuted and, if found guilty,
punished with sanctions proportionate to the gravity of their acts; and that victims
have access to all forms of redress;
(c)
Provide specialized training to law enforcement and judicial officials on
the investigation of trafficking and on victim identification procedures, including
among asylum seekers.
Death penalty
43.
While noting that the State party announced at the 2016 universal periodic review
the possibility of declaring a moratorium or a similar gesture with regard to the execution of
the death penalty (see A/HRC/33/13, para. 65), the Committee regrets the lack of
information, owing to the absence of a State party report, on relevant measures taken by the
State party on this subject (art. 16).
44.
The Committee calls on the State party to take the necessary steps to declare a
formal moratorium on the death penalty, with a view to its abolition.
Training
45.
The Committee is concerned at the absence of training for law enforcement
personnel and other public officials involved in work with persons deprived of their liberty,
asylum seekers and migrants on the provisions of the Convention. It also notes with
concern the lack of training for medical doctors and other medical personnel on the Manual
on the Effective Investigation and Documentation of Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or
Degrading Treatment or Punishment (the Istanbul Protocol) and the absence of specific
methodologies to evaluate the effectiveness and impact of the training provided (arts. 2, 10
and 16).
46.
The State party should ensure that law enforcement personnel and other public
officials involved in work with persons deprived of their liberty, asylum seekers and
migrants participate in training on the provisions of the Convention. It should also
ensure that the Istanbul Protocol is made an essential part of the training for all
medical professionals in particular and that the training includes programmes on
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