CAT/C/60/3 Indeed, the Optional Protocol imposes a legal obligation upon States to facilitate visits of the Subcommittee at the time of the Subcommittee’s choosing. Further, it is clear from the text of article 4 of the Optional Protocol that, as the Subcommittee also recently explained in advice provided to national preventive mechanisms (see CAT/OP/57/4 and Corr.1, annex), the Subcommittee and national preventive mechanisms should be able to visit any place in which a person is deprived of liberty, in the sense of their not being free to leave, or where the Subcommittee considers that a person might or could be deprived of their liberty, if the deprivation of liberty relates to a situation in which the State either exercises, or might be expected to exercise, a regulatory function. This includes places operated under the authority or regulatory oversight of the State, where third parties might be detaining persons de facto. It must be emphasized that such places fall within the scope of the mandates of the national preventive mechanisms as well as that of the Subcommittee, which is particularly important since the Subcommittee has observed, over the past decade, a rise in the number of incidents of torture and ill-treatment with clear correlations to the protection of national security and national boundaries. C. Compliance with article 17 of the Optional Protocol 57. A further concern regarding cooperation within the Optional Protocol framework relates to State party obligations set out in article 17 of the Optional Protocol. A significant number of States parties have still not fulfilled their obligation to maintain, designate or establish one or several independent national preventive mechanisms within one year of ratification of the Optional Protocol. Therefore, communications were sent to all States parties whose compliance with the obligations set out in article 17 was at least three years overdue, inviting them to provide the Subcommittee with written information on the steps taken to comply with those obligations, and indicating that a list of those not in compliance with their article 17 obligations would be publicized. 58. The list is now posted on the public website of the Subcommittee.3 The list will be reviewed at each Subcommittee session and any necessary adjustments will be made. States will be removed from the list once they are in compliance with article 17. The Subcommittee hopes that this aide memoire on compliance will be of use to States parties, and notes that it has already prompted positive action. Since effective national preventive mechanisms are a cornerstone of the Optional Protocol system, the Subcommittee remains committed to cooperating with the States parties by providing advice and assistance concerning the establishment of such mechanisms, in accordance with the mandate set out in article 11 of the Optional Protocol, and looks forward to developing further ways through which compliance and follow-up may be encouraged, supported and enhanced. D. Looking forward 59. Owing to the further development of its own “tool box”, the Subcommittee is in a better position than ever to assist States in the designation and establishment of independent national preventive mechanisms, and to assist the mechanisms themselves in the implementation of their preventive mandate. At the same time, there is room for still further efficacious engagement and a need to promote synergies among the various torture prevention bodies and mechanisms. This has thus far been hindered by the inadequacy of available human and financial resources. 60. As already highlighted, the Special Fund established under the Optional Protocol is a vital tool for supporting the implementation of Subcommittee recommendations and the work of national preventive mechanisms. It is absolutely crucial that the Fund remain operational and well resourced. While there were some positive developments late in the reporting period, the overall situation of the Fund remains grim, despite efforts made by the Subcommittee and the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights to raise awareness and encourage contributions. 3 See www.ohchr.org/EN/HRBodies/OPCAT/Pages/Article17.aspx. 11