102.Members of the delegation heard allegations in most of the states visited about how it is possible to avoid being jailed or paying legally established fines by paying a certain amount of money to the police at the time of arrest. The Subcommittee believes that such situations can lead to corrupt practices by the police in order to obtain “bonuses”. The delegation had the opportunity to hear many testimonies about situations in which individuals who had committed ordinary administrative offences (for example, being caught drunk or drinking alcohol in a public thoroughfare) were not formally arrested if they had paid the police a certain amount of money at the moment in which they were caught committing the offence. The Subcommittee considers such practices unacceptable. The Subcommittee recommends that, in order to eliminate the risk of unnecessary detention and cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment, deprivation of liberty should be the last resort in cases involving administrative penalties or minor offences. 103.The delegation observed that most people incarcerated in the police stations visited had no belongings or money. The delegation also found irregularities in the records of detainees’ belongings. In all the states visited, members of the delegation heard allegations by many persons deprived of their liberty, from whom the police or other law enforcement officers had allegedly extracted money and material goods at the time of arrest. In Oaxaca, for example, members of the delegation noted that, according to the police detention records, 93 per cent of detainees arrived at the facility without money. The persons interviewed who reported having been dispossessed of their belongings by police officers also frequently reported having been the victims of some form of ill-treatment. The Subcommittee considers that this abuse of power, which is apparently widespread, not only reflects a lack of respect for detainees, but can also lead to other forms of ill-treatment, including physical abuse and even situations of arbitrary detention. The delegation learned of allegations of cases of detention without grounds, in which the police stole money and other belongings from detained persons for the sole purpose of obtaining money to supplement the low salaries paid to police officers. Members of the delegation learned that it is common practice in some states for the police to pick people up without any grounds and transport them in their vehicles to empty plots of land or other isolated places, strip them of their possessions, threaten to put them in jail if they put up any kind of resistance and then subsequently release them. The Subcommittee recommends that the State party consider the possibility of increasing police salaries, so that they can support themselves in a dignified manner, without resorting to these types of practices, which constitute a clear abuse of authority and entail a risk of cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment. In addition, the Subcommittee recommends the development of a strict policy for the supervision of police officers that addresses the forms of conduct reported to the Subcommittee. Police officers should have visible identification on their uniforms and should be prohibited from carrying cash while on duty. 104.The delegation was informed that some police officers in Mexico City had received financial compensation for each arrest they made. The Subcommittee is of the opinion that the practice of rewarding such behaviour may lead to arbitrary and unlawful detention by some officers, which creates an additional risk that those detained will be subject to ill-treatment in order to obtain confessions that corroborate or demonstrate the supposed efficiency of the police. The Subcommittee requests that the Mexican authorities provide detailed information about current practices encouraging arrests by police officers and urges the State party to eradicate such practices in the event that they are still occurring. (b)Lack of due process guarantees 105.The delegation also observed that when such detentions occurred, the individuals concerned did not have a proper hearing or any other opportunity to exercise their right of defence, it being the function of the juez calificador (municipal magistrate) simply to impose fines and periods of detention, with no real possibility for accused persons to exercise their right to defend themselves. 106.Members of the delegation interviewed many detainees who had not been informed of their rights. The delegation was also informed that relatives of detainees had not been advised of their arrest. The Subcommittee wishes to refer to the comments and recommendations in the next section of the report in regard to the lack of due process guarantees, including the right to counsel, the right of detainees to have relatives informed about their arrest and to receive notification that their relatives have been so informed, and detainees’ right to be informed of their rights. The comments and recommendations of the Subcommittee included in the next section in respect of these issues also apply to the situations that the delegation observed when it visited municipal jails. 107.The delegation noted that the Ministry of Security of the state of Jalisco had a “press room”, where persons arrested for alleged administrative offences were publicly paraded before the mass media. This is not an isolated practice. According to allegations received, it is a practice employed by both the police and public prosecutors. The delegation observed similar situations in news reports from other parts of the country. This practice is not only a flagrant violation of due process and the principle of presumption of innocence, it also constitutes degrading treatment of detainees by imposing, without trial, a penalty not established by law. Some of the people interviewed had been victims of this practice and explained to the delegation how they had then been subjected to extreme discrimination by various segments of society. (c)Reports of ill-treatment 108.In addition to receiving testimony and reviewing other information, members of the delegation interviewed many people who had been arrested and heard allegations from them of cruel and inhuman treatment by police officers. In all the states visited, the delegation was told that such abusive practices by the police generally occurred on empty plots of land or in remote areas, but sometimes occurred right in the police station. 109.The delegation also heard accounts of detainees being mistreated in detention facilities. Among the techniques of which members of the delegation were informed, the Subcommittee wishes to highlight the use of gas to incapacitate people, causing unnecessary pain and suffering. Members of the delegation heard from various people detained in Monterrey that these practices were common. 110.A large number of the women interviewed alleged that they had been subjected to cruel or inhuman treatment by the police, especially at the time of their arrest or during transport to police stations. In Jalisco, for example, members of the delegation heard