CAT/C/CYP/CO/4
remedies to challenge the lawfulness of their detention, the rights of persons under the
immigration legislation, and the right to have the free assistance of an interpreter;
(d)
Ensure that the State party monitors regularly compliance with the legal
safeguards by all public officials and that those who do not comply with those
safeguards are duly disciplined.
Impunity and prompt, effective and impartial investigations
8.
The Committee welcomes the criminalization of torture and ill-treatment in
sections 3 and 5, respectively, of Law No. 235/90 on the ratification of the Convention,
which fully incorporates the definition of torture as set out in the Convention. However, the
Committee observes that section 3 of the Law has never been invoked before, or applied by,
domestic courts and section 5 has been invoked in only 4 of the 11 criminal cases of alleged
ill-treatment by police officers registered from 2006 to 2010. The Committee also notes
with great concern that, during the same period, out of 128 complaints relating to torture
and ill-treatment investigated by the Independent Authority for the Investigation of
Allegations and Complaints against the Police, only one case ended with a criminal
conviction for common assault. The low rate of conviction does not correspond to the
documented allegations of ill-treatment by law enforcement officials, particularly against
immigrants. The Committee also takes into consideration reports that allege a lack of
transparency of the investigations and insufficient protection afforded to complainants, who
reportedly have been, on various occasions, accused of bodily harm against the police
officers they complained about (arts. 1, 2, 4, 12, 13 and 16).
The State party should strengthen the implementation of the existing legislation and
the measures already adopted to change the culture of impunity by, inter alia:
(a)
Requiring all officials to report to the Office of the Attorney General
cases indicative of ill-treatment, and adopting protective measures to ensure the
confidentiality and safety of reporting officers;
(b)
Ensuring that the Attorney General is duly informed of all the
allegations of torture or ill-treatment received by the Independent Authority for the
Investigation of Allegations and Complaints against the Police and carries out prompt,
effective and impartial investigations whenever there are reasonable grounds to
believe that acts of torture or ill-treatment have been committed, including
investigation of those officials who knew, or should have known, that ill-treatment was
occurring and failed to prevent it or report it;
(c)
Ensuring that the Attorney General entrusts the investigation of reports
of torture or ill-treatment by law enforcement officials only to independent criminal
investigators;
(d)
Ensuring that public officials under investigation of having committed
acts of torture or ill-treatment are immediately suspended from their duties and
remain so throughout the investigation, subject to the observance of the principle of
presumption of innocence;
(e)
Guaranteeing that complainants are protected against ill-treatment or
intimidation that may arise as a consequence of their complaint, and are duly
informed of the progress and results of their complaint;
(f)
Duly bringing to trial alleged perpetrators of acts of torture or illtreatment and, if they are found guilty, punishing them with penalties proportionate
to the grave nature of their acts. The Committee draws attention to paragraph 10 of
its general comment No. 2 (2007), in which the Committee emphasizes that it would be
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