PART C: Protection against Torture: Procedures before the African Commission and African Human Rights Court DRC, but also in Rwanda. The abduction and deportation of members of the civilian population to ‘concentration camps’ in Rwanda featured among the allegations by the DRC.524 On the basis of Articles 60 and 61 of the Charter, the Commission in its decision relied on the Third Geneva Convention (Relative to the Protection of Civilian Persons in Time of War).525 This Convention provides for the humane treatment of civilians during conflict or occupation. Rejecting both the factual claims and legal arguments of the Respondent States, the Commission found a number of violations, including the violation of Article 5.526 XI. On-Site and Fact-Finding Missions 1. Legal Basis and Conduct of Missions Article 46 of the African Charter allows the African Commission to make use of ‘any appropriate method of investigation’ in performing its functions. This provision has provided a legal basis for on-site missions, also known as ‘country visits’. These visits are undertaken usually when numerous communications against a particular State have been received and the purpose of these visits is for the Commission to explore the possibilities for amicable settlement or to investigate facts relating to the communication. The Commission may also undertake fact-finding missions when there are reports of widespread human rights violations in a State party or allegations of a general nature. The Commission is not required to have received a prior communication in order to justify undertaking a fact-finding mission. One of the drawbacks of these procedures is its reliance on the consent and facilitating role of the very State that is under investigation. 2. Selected Missions The Commission has undertaken a number of on-site and fact-finding missions,to Mali, Senegal, Mauritania, Nigeria, Zimbabwe, Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic and Sudan, among others. To examine the process more closely, we turn to the mission to Zimbabwe. After receiving numerous reports of widespread human rights violations in Zimbabwe during several of its sessions, the African Commission undertook a fact-finding mission to the country. Due to difficulties in arranging the visit, more than a year elapsed between the date of the decision to undertake the visit (May 2001), and the date of the visit itself (June 2002). 524 Ibid., para 6. 525 Ibid., para 89. 526 Ibid., para 98. 119