CAT/C/PRY/CO/4-6 practice. In particular, the Committee expresses concern at the lack of mechanisms to give effect to the right of persons deprived of their liberty to legal assistance from the very start of detention and to independent medical examinations, and their right to notify a relative or trusted individual of their detention and to be informed of their rights and the grounds for arrest at the time of detention. With regard to habeas corpus, the Committee is concerned by information it has received that habeas corpus petitions can take 30 days to be resolved. As regards medical examinations at the start of detention, the Committee is concerned that these are not routinely carried out and that they take place in the presence of police officers. It is also concerned by reports that persons deprived of liberty are held in police custody for long periods without being properly registered and that a large number of police stations do not, in practice, comply with the rules on registration procedures for detainees. In general, the Committee expresses concern at the statement by the delegation from the State party that there are problems with the nationwide implementation of Decision No. 176/2010 of the Office of the National Police Commander, ordering the introduction of a registration system in police stations (arts. 2, 11 and 12). The State party should take prompt and effective action to ensure that all detainees benefit in practice from all fundamental legal safeguards from the time of their detention. The State party should guarantee that, in practice, all detainees are informed immediately of the reason for their detention and of their rights, and that their right to have access to a lawyer and to contact a relative or trusted individual is guaranteed. The remedy of habeas corpus should be reviewed and strengthened and the necessary steps taken to ensure that the procedure granting it is summary and brief and that decisions on it are taken within the legal time limit in every case. The State party should guarantee that individuals in police custody are able to undergo an independent medical examination at the very start of their detention and not in the presence of a police officer. The State party should make certain that persons deprived of their liberty are registered promptly and ensure that the custody records in police stations are inspected regularly to check that they are being maintained in accordance with the procedures established by law. The State party should also ensure that the provisions of Decision No. 176/2010, on registration of detainees, are observed and, to that end, should consider making said decision law. Free legal assistance 12. While welcoming the recent adoption of the Organization Act on the Public Defender Service and the increased human resources allocated to it, the Committee expresses concern at the limited number of public defenders in the country, which prevents many persons deprived of their liberty from receiving adequate legal assistance. The State party should guarantee free legal assistance from the very start of detention for all persons requesting such assistance who do not have the means to pay for it themselves. To this end, the State party should improve working conditions in the Public Defender Service and allocate more human, financial and material resources to the institution to enable it to perform its duties. State of emergency 13. The Committee takes note of the declaration, in Act No. 4473 of 10 October 2011, of a 60-day state of emergency in the departments of Concepción and San Pedro. The Committee notes with concern that other states of emergency have been declared during the period covered by the State party’s report. Despite the information provided by the State party on the steps taken to safeguard the human rights of the persons affected, the Committee is concerned about restrictions on human rights in this period, as well as about potential violations of the Convention during the state of emergency. 4 GE.11-47781