68. The Committee recommends that the State party should ensure the initiation of disciplinary proceedings in cases of torture or ill-treatment, rather than await the outcome of criminal proceedings. 69. The Committee encourages the State party to take the necessary measures to ensure that the process of expulsion from the country, in particular in the case of minors, is in keeping with the Convention. 70. The Committee recommends that these conclusions and recommendations be widely disseminated in the State party in all appropriate languages. VENEZUELA 71.The Committee considered the second periodic report of Venezuela (CAT/C/33/Add.5) at its 538th, 541st and 545th meetings, held on 18, 19 and 21 November 2002 (CAT/C/SR.538, 541 and 545), and adopted the following conclusions and recommendations. A. Introduction 72.The Committee welcomes with satisfaction the second periodic report of Venezuela, which should have been submitted in August 1996 but was received in September 2000 and updated in September 2002. This report contains the information which the State party was to have included in its third periodic report, which should have been submitted in August 2000. 73.The Committee notes that although the report contains abundant information on the legal provisions which have entered into force since the previous report was submitted, it lacks information on facts relating to the implementation in practice of the Convention. It contains no descriptions of situations or facts which have been examined or considered by the judicial, administrative or other authorities with jurisdiction over the issues dealt with in the Convention. 74.The Committee also had before it additional material supplied by the State party, and a report specially prepared by the Office of the Ombudsman. The information contained in this document and its annexes has been very useful in evaluating compliance with the obligations the Convention places on the State party. 75.The Committee thanks the State party for sending a large and well-qualified delegation of representatives of the Government and the Office of the Ombudsman; its frank and constructive dialogue with them facilitated consideration of the report. B. Positive aspects 76.The Committee welcomes with satisfaction the entry into force on 30 December 1999 of the new Constitution of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, which demonstrates progress in human rights. In particular, the Committee considers as positive the following aspects of the Constitution: (a)It gives constitutional status to human rights treaties, covenants and conventions, declares that they take precedence in domestic law, prescribes that they should be immediately and directly applicable and provides that the absence of any law regulating these rights does not impair their exercise; (b)It recognizes the right of individuals to submit petitions or complaints to the international bodies established for the purpose in order to seek protection for their human rights. This recognition is in accordance with the declaration by the State party in 1994 under article 22 of the Convention; (c)It requires the State to investigate and impose penalties for human rights offences, declares that action to punish them is not subject to a statute of limitations and excludes any measure implying impunity, such as an amnesty or a general pardon; (d)It requires offences concerning human rights violations and crimes against humanity to be heard in ordinary courts; (e)It imposes on the State the obligation to compensate in full victims of human rights violations and recognizes the right to rehabilitation of victims of torture and cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment inflicted or tolerated by agents of the State; (f)It regulates custody safeguards appropriately, e.g. a prior court order is required for any arrest or detention, except in flagrante delicto; it establishes a period of 48 hours for bringing a detainee before a judicial authority, as the Code of Criminal Procedure already provides; it regards as the general rule that persons charged should remain at liberty and pre-trial custody as the exception; (g)It stipulates a series of safeguards for the detainee, such as access to a lawyer immediately on being detained and a ban on obtaining confessions by torture; (h)It makes compulsory the extradition of persons charged with human rights offences and makes provision for a brief, public, oral procedure for trying them. 77.The Committee considers of particular importance the establishment under the Constitution of the Office of the Ombudsman as an independent body responsible for the promotion, protection and monitoring of the rights and safeguards established in the Constitution and in the international human rights instruments ratified by Venezuela. 78.The Committee takes note with satisfaction of the adoption of various legislative provisions and the establishment of units in various sectors of the State administration as an indication of the importance assigned to better protection and promotion of human rights. Important instances of such provisions are the basic laws on states of emergency, on refugees and asylum-seekers, on the Public Prosecutor’s Office and on the protection of children and young people. Among the units established, mention should be made