A/54/426 rights into their work and explained how he had sought to give effect to the policy in his own work. In addition, he was able to attend the United Nations fiftieth anniversary meeting of the International Scientific Professional Advisory Council of the United Nations Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice Programme, held in Courmayeur, Italy, in October 1995. Although participating on behalf of the University of Essex Human Rights Centre, he addressed the gathering on the evolution of the United Nations thematic machinery, with particular reference to his own mandate. On the nomination of the Chairperson of the fifth meeting of special rapporteurs, the Special Rapporteur also attended the Diplomatic Conference of Plenipotentiaries on the Establishment of an International Criminal Court, held in Rome in June/July 1998. He also attended a round table of the International Institute of Humanitarian Law on the resulting Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court, held in San Remo, Italy, in September 1998. During his tenure, the Special Rapporteur has also attended numerous conferences and seminars organized by non-governmental organizations and academic institutions. of gender specific forms of torture and the torture of children. In his report to the fifty-second session of the Commission on Human Rights, the Special Rapporteur considered the issue of torture and children (E/CN.4/1996/35, paras. 9-17). C. Corporal punishment 41. In his report to the fifty-third session of the Commission on Human Rights, the Special Rapporteur addressed the issue of corporal punishment (E/CN.4/1997/7, paras. 3-11). He noted in this report that it had been the general practice of the mandate to take up cases involving corporal punishment, usually by means of the urgent appeal method. He further noted, however, that the Government of Saudi Arabia had contested the basis of the Special Rapporteur’s concern with corporal punishment and, therefore, he addressed the relationship of the practice to the mandate of the Special Rapporteur in that report. D. Incommunicado detention IV. Issues of special concern to the Special Rapporteur A. Gender-specific forms of torture 39. In paragraph 5 of its resolution 1994/37 the Commission on Human Rights “invite[d] the Special Rapporteur to examine questions concerning torture directed disproportionately or primarily against women and conditions conducive to such torture, and to make appropriate recommendations concerning prevention of gender-specific forms of torture”. In his report to the fiftyfirst session of the Commission on Human Rights, the Special Rapporteur addressed gender-specific forms of torture (E/CN.4/1995/34, paras. 15-24). B. Violation of the prohibition of torture of children 40. In paragraph 5 of its resolution 1995/37 B the Commission on Human Rights invited the Special Rapporteur to examine questions concerning torture directed primarily against women and children and conditions conducive to such torture and to make appropriate recommendations concerning the prevention 42. In his 1988 report to the Commission on Human Rights at its fifty-fourth session, the Special Rapporteur’s predecessor recommended, inter alia, that incommunicado detention should be declared illegal (E/CN.4/1988/17). Similarly, in its general comment (16) adopted at its sixteenth session, of 27 July 1982, the Human Rights Committee states: “Among the safeguards which may make control effective are provisions against detention incommunicado, granting, without prejudice to the investigation, persons such as doctors, lawyers and family members access to the detainees; provisions requiring that detainees should be held in places that are publicly recognized and that their names and places of detention should be entered in a central register available to persons concerned, such as relatives ...” 3 Based upon information received over the course of the past seven years, the Special Rapporteur is of the view that incommunicado detention is the most important determining factor as to whether an individual is at risk of torture. As such, the Special Rapporteur reiterates the recommendation of his predecessor and urges all States to declare incommunicado detention illegal. 4 9