CAT/OP/GAB/1  The maintenance and persistence of the confession-based evidence system, which is applied strictly by the criminal investigation police and the judiciary;  Law enforcement agencies and judicial bodies that base their decisions on confessions, and the lack of effective prosecutorial and judicial control over law enforcement activities;  The lack or scarcity of resources available to the police forensic service regarding the use of forensic science to produce evidence in criminal proceedings and limit reliance on confessions;  The lack of access to medical examinations carried out by independent and qualified doctors and insufficient access for detainees to appropriate health care;  The impunity and general lack of accountability of police and gendarmerie officials;  Widespread indifference with regard to persons deprived of their liberty and a certain resignation among victims and the public in general;  The impassiveness and tacit consent of public authorities in respect of inter prisoner violence resulting from the system of self-management observed in the three detention facilities visited;  The inherently poor material and financial conditions in places of deprivation of liberty that generally lead to ill-treatment (and can even, in some cases, amount to torture). IV. National preventive mechanism 16. Gabon acceded to the Optional Protocol on 22 September 2010. Under article 17 of the Protocol, the Government of Gabon was required to establish a national preventive mechanism within one year, that is, no later than 22 September 2011. During its visit, the Subcommittee noted that, more than two years after that deadline, the mechanism had still not been put in place. 17. The Subcommittee recommends that the State party designate and establish a national preventive mechanism as soon as possible. In that connection, the authorities should take all necessary measures to ensure that the mechanism is in full compliance with the Paris Principles, as required by the Optional Protocol, and with the Subcommittee’s guidelines on national preventive mechanisms, particularly by allocating it an adequate budget and guaranteeing the independence of its members. The Subcommittee also recalls that the selection and appointment of members of the national preventive mechanism should be identified by an open, transparent and inclusive process, and that members of the mechanism should collectively have the expertise and experience necessary for its effective functioning. V. Substantive issues A. Normative framework and reliance on confessions as evidence 18. The Subcommittee notes that, generally speaking, the normative framework in Gabon makes it possible to combat torture and other inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment, although it does have some shortcomings. The Subcommittee observes that Gabon ratified the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment on 8 September 2000. However, it has not GE. 15-10283 5/24