CAT/C/37/D/227/2003
Page 5
occasions, in 1997 and 1999, to the following torture: hit with blunt instruments, such as fists,
and a weapon; stabbed with a knife and glass; burned with a heated metal pipe; beaten on the
soles of his feet with a police truncheon; hung from the ceiling; subjected to electrical shocks
in his temples; attempted suffocation by having his head thrust under water in a barrel and by
having water infused into his nose; threatening against the complainant’s life by putting a
syringe filled with poison and a gun to his head. He found that the complainant had suffered
permanent physical damage in the form of chronical headache, pain in the lower section of
his back, loss of feeling in the left side of his face, sometimes a weakness in the whole of the
left section of his body, attacks of vertigo. The second doctor certified that the complainant
had been subjected to medical treatment in Sweden since 8 January 2001, when he contacted
the medical ward in Östhammar and was diagnosed as being in a condition of anxiety. The
complainant was in contact with the other medical wards in January and April 2001.
According to the certificate, the complainant’s symptoms were characterized by: feelings of
being pursued; fear, and having difficulties in feeling confidence in people; physical
symptoms in the form of sickness when he sees a police car; pain in his body when he thinks
of the torture; lack of sleep; nightmares; attacks of feelings of being absent. The complainant
also confessed to having thoughts of committing suicide. The doctor concluded that the
diagnosis of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) in all probability was correct, and that it
could be described as a case of ‘mental illness that had been brought about by very difficult
experiences’. The doctor further concluded that there was information, which led to the
conclusion that the complainant was in a process of suicidal development. A third doctor’s
report confirmed that the complainant was in contact with her ward since 11 July 2001 after
being referred there by another medical ward and by the psychiatric clinic at St. Göran’s
Hospital. The complainant was diagnosed with depression and PTSD related, inter alia, to the
persecution and the torture to which he has been subjected in Bangladesh. A fourth doctor, a
psychiatrist, confirmed this diagnosis describing the complainant as showing strong feelings
of anxiety, flashbacks from situations of torture, being always on the move and depressive,
and having difficulty in concentrating. The complainant insisted that a special doctor should
be appointed by the Aliens Appeals Board in order to scrutinize the medical evidence in the
case. On 23 May 2002, the Board decided to deny the motion, without giving any reasons for
the decision.
2.11 In his appeal, the complainant stated that the decision by the Migration Board was
inconsistent, since the Board seemed not to believe his statement regarding the question of
what he had been subjected to by the Bangladeshi authorities. The Board stated that it had not
doubted his statement regarding the torture and maltreatment to which he had been subjected,
however, it had not believed his statement about the arrests. By decision of 24 July 2002, the
Aliens Appeals Board upheld the decision by the Migration Board and shared its findings on
the general conditions in Bangladesh and its legal system. The Aliens Appeal Board found
that the complainant could not be considered as a refugee or as a person otherwise in need of
protection according to the Aliens Act; and that ‘considering all the circumstances’ he could
not be granted a residence permit for humanitarian reasons.
2.12 On 4 February 2003, the complainant was taken into police custody awaiting execution
of the deportation order.