CAT/C/12/D/13/1993
page 8
and the use of an anonymous informant makes it impossible for him to verify
the credibility and the objectivity of the information furnished. Counsel
furthermore doubts that the informant would have had access to the register of
the Ndolo prison, which normally would not be open to anyone from the outside.
He therefore requests that the State party disclose the name of the informant
and the name of the human rights movement of which he is a member, failing
which the information provided by the State party should not be taken into
account by the Committee. To substantiate the credibility of the author’s
story, counsel refers to the initial communication and the position taken by
Amnesty International in support of it.
7.4
Counsel further argues that the fact that the author was conditionally
released from detention does not diminish the risk of being subjected to
torture upon return to the country. In this connection, counsel points out
that the situation in Zaire has considerably deteriorated since 1990 and that
it is the present danger facing the author upon his return to Zaire which is
at issue. To support his argument, counsel refers to several reports written
by non-governmental organizations and to the report concerning Zaire prepared
by the Secretary-General for the United Nations Commission on Human Rights,
which indicate that torture and ill-treatment of detainees are common practice
in Zaire and are perpetrated with impunity. Counsel argues that the State
party’s reference to the failure of the High Commissioner for Refugees to
recommend the suspension of all expulsions to Zaire is irrelevant, because
this was related to another case and had nothing to do with the author’s
situation. Counsel further states that the language used in the letter from
the High Commissioner is strongly dissuasive of all expulsions to Zaire.
7.5
Finally, counsel refers to the medical report submitted by the author and
written by a Swiss medical specialist, indicating that the author’s injuries
correspond with the alleged torture. He notes that the State party has
rejected this report as not persuasive without even conducting a
re-examination.
Decision on admissibility and examination of the merits
8.
Before considering any claims contained in a communication, the Committee
against Torture must decide whether or not it is admissible under article 22
of the Convention. The Committee has ascertained, as it is required to do
under article 25, paragraph 5 (a), of the Convention, that the same matter has
not been and is not being examined under another procedure of international
investigation or settlement. The Committee notes that the State party has not
raised any objections to the admissibility of the communication and that it
has confirmed that the author has exhausted all available domestic remedies.
The Committee therefore finds that no obstacles to the admissibility of the
present communication exist and proceeds with the consideration of the merits
of the communication.
9.1
The Committee observes that it is not called upon to determine whether
the author’s rights under the Convention have been violated by Zaire, which is
not a State party to the Convention. The issue before the Committee is
whether the expulsion or return of the author of the communication to Zaire