CAT/OP/PER/1 regarding the continuation of internment and treatment can be taken by the doctor, who may first consult the patient’s family. 106. The Subcommittee recommends that the State party adopt legislation protecting the patient’s right to self-determination and setting clear criteria for exceptional cases in which patients may be interned and treated without their consent. IV. Aspects of the legal and institutional framework for the prevention of torture and ill-treatment A. Definition of torture in national law 107. The definition of torture in article 321 of the Criminal Code does not include all the elements of the definition in article 1 of the Convention against Torture, as it does not include among the purposes of torture “any reason based on discrimination of any kind”. The Code also does not define acts of cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment that do not amount to torture, which are included in article 16 of the Convention. 108. The State party should amend its Criminal Code to include a definition of torture that covers all the elements contained in article 1 of the Convention. B. Public Defender Service 109. The prevention of torture and ill-treatment in places of deprivation of liberty is a responsibility shared by the various institutions dealing with the administration of justice. The Subcommittee is concerned that the current institutional framework does not provide sufficient protection against these practices. 110. According to information received by the Subcommittee, the public defender system is seriously flawed and cannot help prevent torture and ill-treatment. Persons deprived of their liberty repeatedly stated that the work of public defenders was negligible, a mere formality, that they sometimes asked for money to take cases, and that many defendants did not even have access to a public defender. 111. The Subcommittee was also informed that the workload of the few existing public defenders was too heavy for them to do their job properly. If they barely have the capacity to deal with their clients’ cases, it is unrealistic to think that they will also file complaints concerning any torture or ill-treatment that those clients may have suffered. A public defender interviewed in Trujillo said that each public defender handled an average of 800 cases. 112. The Subcommittee recommends that the State party adopt measures to significantly strengthen the Public Defender Service, in particular by providing financial and material resources so that the Service can provide adequate legal defence to all persons deprived of their liberty, including in relation to allegations of torture and ill-treatment that they may have suffered. C. The problem of impunity 113. Information received by the Subcommittee suggests that allegations of torture and ill-treatment are rarely investigated seriously by judges and prosecutors. When detainees present injuries, prosecutors generally do not request specific medical tests to detect possible torture. If no such request is made, doctors perform a simple examination, not a specialized one. It was pointed out that there is no official record of cases of torture in Peru: rather, cases are under-recorded. In general, if investigations get under way, it is only in very serious cases such as ones resulting in death, with extensive media coverage, and thanks to families’ own determination, as illustrated by the testimony received by the Subcommittee from parents whose son died in 2011 after being beaten by the police. 16 GE.17-13638