Report of the Commissioner for Human Rights on the activities of the National Mechanism for the Prevention of Torture in Poland in 2017 ƒƒ A man from Syria (which country of origin he only reported) was placed in custody as a result of a suicide attempt that took place at the centre for foreigners where he suffered a suicide crisis connected with the long period of detention. The patient’s condition required immediate intervention and placement in a psychiatric hospital because of direct risk to life. The NMPT experts carried out a crisis intervention aimed at stabilizing the patient. It was not advisable to interview the patient about his traumatic experiences from his earlier life, before arrival to the detention centre. His psychological and physical condition suggested that his traumatic experiences and experienced violence were highly likely. The NMPT highlights that a person’s placement in custody because of a suicidal attempt constitutes inhuman treatment in itself when the person is in such a serious psychological condition. The NMPT: All those persons were placed in closed detention centres in spite of circumstances constituting an absolute counter-indication for detention. What they needed to go through in Poland is a consequence of the lack of an effective system for an early identification of torture victims. None of the persons identified by the NMPT as alleged violence victims or individuals whose mental health is at risk was released by 30 November 2017. Even though there is an internal Border Guard algorithm in place in centres for migrants, which specifies the “Rules of proceeding with foreigners requiring special treatment by the Border Guard”, in our opinion, it is incompliant with Polish law, the Istanbul Protocol as well as other well-established international standards. The said algorithm does not, namely, provide for the “immediate release” of foreigners who are the alleged victims of violence from the closed detention centre. Treatment and therapy offered on the premises of the centre to identified torture victims only deepens mental injuries of migrants in detention. The Commissioner for Human Rights expressed his reservations concerning the “Rules of proceeding with foreigners requiring special treatment by the Border Guard” in the general intervention addressed to the Chief Commander of the Border Guard120. 120 KMP.572.4.2016 71