5. CONTACT WITH THE OUTSIDE WORLD twice a week with the person of his or her choice, unless legally restricted, and should be assisted as necessary in order effectively to enjoy this right.” Rule 62 of the Havana Rules also specifies that juveniles should be able to receive “visits of the representatives of any lawful club or organization in which the juvenile is interested”. 72 The UN Special Rapporteur on torture has stated that the support given to children in detention to maintain contact with parents and family through telephone, electronic or other correspondence, and regular visits at all times is an important safeguard against torture and other forms of ill‑treatment. He recommended that “[c]hildren should be placed in a facility that is as close as possible to the place of residence of their family. Any exceptions to this requirement should be clearly described in the law and not be left to the discretion of the competent authorities. Moreover, children should be given permission to leave detention facilities for a visit to their home and family, and for educational, vocational or other important reasons. The child’s contact with the outside world is an integral part of the human right to humane treatment, and should never be denied as a disciplinary measure.”308 Pre-trial detainees 73 Pre-trial detainees should, in principle, have the same rights in terms of contact with the outside world as sentenced prisoners. Applying restrictions for visits and correspondence indiscriminately to all remand prisoners is not acceptable; rather, any restrictions must be based on a thorough individual assessment of the risk a prisoner may present.309 74 Restrictions on communication and/or visits of pre-trial detainees for the purpose of protecting an ongoing criminal investigation (e. g, risk of collusion) may only be imposed in individual cases, and only by the competent judicial authority. 75 As the CPT emphasizes, remand prisoners should be entitled to receive visits and make telephone calls as a matter of principle, rather than these being subject to authorization by a judicial authority for every instance. According to the CPT, “any refusal in a given case to permit such contacts should be specifically substantiated by the needs of the investigation, require the approval of a judicial authority and be applied for a specific period of time. If it is considered that there is an ongoing risk of collusion, particular visits (or telephone calls) can be monitored.” 310 76 For more details on permissible restrictions, including with regard to segregation or solitary confinement, see Chapter 4, paragraphs 01–72.311 Foreign nationals 77 Foreign national prisoners are often at a disadvantage because of their status as foreigners and the fact that they may not speak the local language. This means they are more likely to be isolated from the outside world. 5 RELEVANT RULES: FOREIGN NATIONALS Rule 62: 1. Prisoners who are foreign nationals shall be allowed reasonable facilities to communicate with the diplomatic and consular representatives of the state to which they belong. 2. Prisoners who are nationals of states without diplomatic or consular representation in the country and refugees or stateless persons shall be allowed similar facilities to communicate with the diplomatic representative of the state which takes charge of their interests or any national or international authority whose task it is to protect such persons. 308 309 310 311 308. Special Rapporteur on Torture, A/HRC/28/68 (2015), op. cit., note 132, para. 77. 309. European Prison Rules, Council of Europe, op. cit., note 74, Rule 99; European Committee for the Prevention of Torture and Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (CPT), 26th General Report of the CPT, Council of Europe, April 2017, CPT/Inf(2017) 5, para. 59 et sqq. 310. Ibid, paras. 60, 61. 311. As Section C (Prisoners under arrest or awaiting trial) does not contain specific provisions regarding contact with the outside world, the general provisions set out in Part 1 apply also to untried prisoners (see: Preliminary observation 3(1) and 3(2)). Guidance document on the Nelson Mandela Rules 129

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