A/HRC/31/57/Add.3 107. While cases of physical violence, including corporal punishment, and verbal mistreatment by prison staff have almost entirely disappeared, Georgia continues to face a challenge with regard to police officers overstepping their powers, as seen in particular in the recent allegations of police abuse. 108. Legislative and law enforcement agencies in Georgia are advised to bring all arrested persons immediately to temporary placement isolators. All relevant investigatory action must be conducted in the isolators, to ensure that all guarantees of detainees are safeguarded. The recording of the time of placement and of the health conditions of detainees protects them from ill-treatment and minimizes the risk of arbitrary apprehension and deprivation of liberty. The practice of taking people to a police station for an “off-the-record” conversation should be abolished, given that it creates room for arbitrary or unregistered arrests and subsequent ill-treatment. 109. Despite the significant prosecutions and convictions for cases of torture and abuse of the recent past, much remains to be done. Hundreds of victims are still due an effective remedy. In promoting accountability, the Government faces the challenge of ensuring that old, present and future cases of violations of torture and ill-treatment committed by law enforcement officers and prison staff are properly dealt with through prompt, effective and transparent investigation, prosecution, punishment and remedy by an independent and impartial body. 110. To respond to the crucial need to prevent any form of retrogression, reforms must be consolidated and developed to ensure, inter alia, better conditions of detention. The national preventive mechanism must be strengthened, and an effective framework for investigating, prosecuting, punishing and remedying past, current and future cases of torture and ill-treatment should be developed and implemented. B. Recommendations 112. The Special Rapporteur recommends that the Government of Georgia, in a spirit of cooperation and partnership and with appropriate assistance from the international community, including the United Nations and other actors, take decisive steps to implement the recommendations below. 113. With regard to legislation, the Special Rapporteur recommends that the Government of Georgia: (a) Review Criminal Code article 174(2) to ensure clear rules and guidelines for procedures to be followed immediately after an arrest, including with a view to defining a time limit for holding the arrested person in a police station before transferring the person to a temporary detention isolator; (b) In accordance with Criminal Code article 218(8), and to ensure that offences of torture and ill-treatment are duly sanctioned, take measures to close any gap – whether due to inadequate use of plea bargaining or erroneous interpretation of article 144(1) – that would allow perpetrators of torture and ill-treatment to receive a more lenient sentence; (c) Take steps to eliminate all coercion in plea bargaining, including by revising the restrictive and prolonged nature of the current pretrial detention regime; (d) Take the steps necessary to prevent the prison system from reaching or exceeding its maximum capacity; (e) Revise the measures enacted in early 2013 and make necessary adjustments to avoid imbalances and to ensure fairness in their application; 18