PART 1: Overview of the Human Rights Committee and the Committee Against Torture 1.5.5 Inquiry Procedure Under Article 20 of the CAT, the CAT Committee may undertake an inquiry into a State party if it receives credible information indicating that torture is being systematically practiced in that State. This procedure is discussed in Section 2.3.2 of this Handbook. 1.5.6 Duties under the Optional Protocol Most tasks under the Optional Protocol are conferred upon a body known as the Subcommittee on Prevention of Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment of the Committee Against Torture. The Subcommittee is discussed in Section 2.3.3(b). The CAT Committee maintains some role under the Optional Protocol. Once a year it should hold its meeting at the same time as the Subcommittee.57 It receives the public annual report of the Subcommittee,58 and it may also publicize the Subcommittee’s findings under the Optional Protocol, or make a public statement about a State, if requested to do so by the Subcommittee due to a State’s lack of cooperation.59 1.6 The Impact of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and the Convention against Torture As noted above, there are opportunities for the HRC and the CAT Committee to “judge” the performance of a State party with regard to its implementation of the relevant treaty. For example, the CAT Committee or the HRC may find a State in violation of the relevant provisions of the corresponding treaties in an individual complaint. Or a Committee can condemn certain State practices in Concluding Observations issued pursuant to that State party’s report. Or it may be patently obvious that a State is acting in a way that is contrary to the clear recommendations in a General Comment. In addition to substantive violations of the treaties, a State party may fail to fulfil its procedural duties. For example, a State may fail to submit a report on time, and/or it may submit a completely misleading report. Once a State party is found to be under-performing in regard to its treaty obligations, how are those obligations enforced? The Committees are not courts. Rather, they are quasi-judicial bodies. Their decisions and views are not legally binding. However, the provisions of the ICCPR and CAT are legally binding. As the Committees are the pre-eminent authoritative 57 58 59 Article 10(3), Optional Protocol to CAT. Article 16(3), Optional Protocol to CAT. Article 16(4), Optional Protocol to CAT. 39