E/CN.4/2001/66/Add.2
page 26
had allegedly been made to line up against the wall and were kicked and beaten on the ribs and
back with wooden sticks and hoes for some 15 minutes. This is said to have happened for
several nights. According to the information received, they were also threatened with burial in a
clandestine cemetery. Detainees believed that only one night team of guards was responsible for
such beatings.
72.
At the end of the visit, the Special Rapporteur met with prison guards. While they
recognized that not all of them were committed to their jobs, they complained about a lack of
training and the workload. Two thirds of the prison personnel were reported to be hired on a
temporary basis (administrative contracts) and were said not to receive any training at all. They
were said to be working 12 hours and resting the following 24 hours. They finally pointed out
the high level of stress they were exposed to, which was recognized to have led to a certain level
of aggressiveness towards the detainee population and to psychological problems amongst some
of the staff.
E. State of Pernambuco
1. Police stations
73.
On 6 September, the Special Rapporteur visited the 16th District Police station of
Ibura (Recife) where no suspect was currently interrogated or held despite the fact that this
neighbourhood was considered a high crime area. The delegado explained that even on
weekdays only two or three people were brought to the police station per day. The delegado was
nevertheless unable to specify the average period of time a person is held at the station. The
Special Rapporteur noted the deplorable conditions of work of the police personnel. The roof of
one of the offices was falling apart; criminal files were piling up on tables because of the absence
of filing cabinets; the rest room for police officers was filthy and lacked basic comfort. In one of
the offices, where interrogations are supposed to take place, the Special Rapporteur found
wooden sticks as well as a palmatoria. The delegado said that they had not been used for a very
long time. The palmatoria and the sticks were indeed covered with dust. The lock-up was
composed of two cells measuring approximately 3 square metres, very dirty and smelly with, in a
corner, a hole full of excrement. According to information later received, the delegado had been
removed from office pending investigation regarding the palmatoria and the lack of proper
recording.
74.
The Special Rapporteur then visited the 15th District Police station of Cavaleiro (Recife)
where no suspect was currently held. Again, the conditions of work appeared to the Special
Rapporteur to be poor. An investigator drew the attention of the Special Rapporteur to the lack
of elementary material resources, such as paper, typewriters and filing cabinets. He further noted
that despite the fact that shootings were very common in the area under the jurisdiction of this
police station, police officers had not been provided with bulletproof jackets. For his security,
the investigator had bought one with his own money. He also pointed out that in a violent crime
area he had had to purchase his own weapon and indicated that there was no rule requiring him
to file a report when he discharges it. The lock-up consisted of two completely dark cells
measuring approximately 2 square metres with, in a corner, a hole used as a toilet. They were
located at the end of a small corridor without light. The delegado indicated that nobody was
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