A/HRC/31/57/Add.3 23. With regard to the arrest, detention and expulsion of illegal migrants, the Minister for Internal Affairs, by Order No. 631 of 19 August 2014, approved a procedure according to which alien detainees are to be placed in a temporary detention isolator or a special temporary placement centre for a maximum period of 72 hours. The Order also requires detainees to be informed of their rights, including the rights to legal counsel, to a medical examination, to notify their family of the detention and to contact diplomatic representatives. In addition, the Order addresses the principle of prohibition of discrimination, and establishes certain safeguards to protect the honour and dignity of the detainees. 3. Complaints and investigation of acts of torture and ill-treatment 24. The Office of the Chief Prosecutor is in charge of all prosecution and prosecutorial matters in Georgia. Parliamentary oversight of the Office of the Chief Prosecutor is provided for by article 49 of the Law on Prosecution. Parliamentary oversight of the activities of Prosecution Services is carried out through the hearing of information provided by the Chief Prosecutor and subsequent discussion. The hearing takes place at the request of Parliament or at the initiative of the Chief Prosecutor. This information must not contain issues related to the investigation of particular criminal cases, except for cases directly envisaged by national law, or international agreements and treaties. The Special Rapporteur is aware of new amendments to the law on the Prosecutor’s Office providing for the establishment of a prosecutorial council, which will comprise prosecutors elected by their peers, members of Parliament, judges and representatives of civil society. One of the key functions of the council will be to hear reports from the Chief Prosecutor on the current state of affairs, including with regard to human rights and freedoms. The council will also play an important role in appointing and dismissing the Chief Prosecutor. The Special Rapporteur was informed that the amendments had had their first reading in Parliament and were expected to become law by the end of September 2015. He welcomes the amendments as a crucial step in ensuring the accountability of the Office of the Chief Prosecutor. 25. Georgia ratified the Optional Protocol to the Convention against Torture in 2005, and designated the Office of the Public Defender (Ombudsperson) as its national preventive mechanism in 2009, a parliamentary ombudsman institution, independent of other branches of government. III. Assessment of the situation 26. The Special Rapporteur noted a drastic change in the situation since the parliamentary elections held in October 2012, and welcomes the clear signal sent by the Government of its commitment to give a high priority to the fight against torture, illtreatment and inappropriate conditions of detention. 27. Reports by various national and international organizations and mechanisms, including the previous mandate holder (E/CN.4/2006/6/Add.3), the Working Group on Arbitrary Detention (A/HRC/19/57/Add.2) and the European Court of Human Rights, have testified to widespread practices of severe beating and other forms of corporal punishment, psychological pressure and torture used against inmates throughout the Georgian penitentiary system in the period before the parliamentary elections in October 2012. The reports described the use of sensory and sleep deprivation, isolation and exposure to extreme temperatures, verbal insults and humiliation, threats, including of execution, torture, sexual abuse, ill-treatment of relatives, and of being made to witness the torture of fellow inmates; overall deficient conditions of detention, marked by overcrowding and insanitary conditions, lack of access to toilet facilities, showers, drinking water and food, compounded by restrictions imposed on the satisfaction of physiological needs. 6