CAT/C/HND/CO/2
Control and management of the prison system
15.
While taking note of the adoption in 2012 of the National Prison System Act and the
preparation of the National Prison Policy, the Committee notes with concern that the armed
forces and the police now control and manage prisons, where, nevertheless, situations of
inmate self-rule sometimes occur. It is also concerned that remand centres have been set up
for persons accused of ordinary crimes in at least three military facilities (art. 11).
16.
The Committee urges the State party to prioritize handing over the
management of prisons to the National Prison Institute. The State party should end
the practice of detaining persons accused of ordinary crimes in military facilities.
Purge of the National Police
17.
While taking note of the information provided by the State party on the purge of the
National Police, the Committee finds it regrettable that no reasons were given for the
dismissal of 42 per cent of the 459 police officers evaluated so far. It also expresses concern
about the absence of information on criminal proceedings taken against members of the
National Police who were dismissed for acts in breach of the Convention (arts. 2, 12, 13
and 16).
18.
The State party should:
(a)
Ensure that the purge of the National Police is transparent, impartial
and effective, in accordance with the law;
(b)
Ensure that the alleged perpetrators of acts of torture and ill-treatment,
including individuals in positions of command, are duly tried and, if found guilty,
punished with sentences commensurate with the gravity of their acts;
(c)
Ensure that victims of police abuse receive redress, including fair and
adequate compensation, and the fullest possible rehabilitation.
Conditions of detention
19.
The Committee notes with concern the difficult conditions faced by persons
deprived of their liberty in the State party’s prisons, particularly because of overcrowding,
the lack of security in prisons, inadequate facilities, a shortage of trained personnel and the
absence of rehabilitation programmes for prisoners. In this regard, the Committee takes
note of the information provided by the delegation indicating that four new prisons,
including a large one with a capacity of 2,000, would be opening soon, and that these are a
response from the State party to the large increase in the prison population in recent years.
In addition, the Committee looks favourably on other recent measures taken by the State
party to reduce prison overcrowding, especially the proactive identification of remand
prisoners eligible for prison benefits and the amendment to article 184 of the Code of
Criminal Procedure that removes the restrictions on the use of alternatives to deprivation of
liberty for 21 offences. The Committee also expresses concern about the unreliability of
health services and the persistent shortage of medical staff in prisons. Lastly, the
Committee regrets that there is no guarantee that remand prisoners will be separated from
convicted prisoners serving their sentences and that some mixed prisons do not have
separate facilities for women detainees or prisoners (arts. 2, 11 and 16).
20.
The State party should:
(a)
Redouble its efforts to relieve overcrowding in penal institutions, mainly
by making use of alternatives to custodial sentences;
(b)
4
Continue working to improve existing penal facilities;
GE.16-14849