CAT/OP/BRA/3 7. The Subcommittee requests the State to provide it with a reply within six months from the date of transmission of the present report, giving a full account of the actions taken to implement the recommendations and a road map and timeline for those that remain pending. 8. The present report will remain confidential until such time as the State decides to make it public, as stipulated in article 16 (2) of the Optional Protocol. The Subcommittee draws the State’s attention to the Special Fund established in accordance with article 26 of the Optional Protocol, as recommendations contained in public Subcommittee visit reports can form the basis of an application to that mechanism for funding of specific projects. 9. The Subcommittee recommends that the State request the publication of the present report in accordance with article 16 (2) of the Optional Protocol. In addition, the Subcommittee recommends that the State distribute the report to all the relevant government departments and institutions. II. Facilitation of the visit and cooperation 10. The Subcommittee expresses its gratitude to the federal authorities for their cooperation. In particular, the Subcommittee would like to thank the State for the information received prior to the visit, the issuance of credentials for unrestricted access to places of detention and for the designation of Pedro Saldanha, Head of the Human Rights Division of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, as focal point for the visit. The Subcommittee would also like to thank Renato Vitto, Director General of the National Penitentiary Department, for facilitating the coordination of the Subcommittee’s visit on the ground. 11. The Subcommittee acknowledges the cooperation extended by the Government during the design of the mission, the transparency of the dialogue with the Subcommittee during the mission, and the level of access provided by federal and state institutions through meetings and visits. Nevertheless, serious difficulties of access presented themselves in the State of Amazonas, due to lack of thorough knowledge of the Optional Protocol. Some of these difficulties, attributable to high-level state authorities in Amazonas, were partially resolved after the intervention of the federal authorities. The Subcommittee wishes to underline the constructive role played by the Permanent Mission of Brazil to the United Nations Office at Geneva during the preparatory stage of the visit. III. Reprisals 12. The Subcommittee is concerned about possible reprisals against persons interviewed during the visit, and wishes to emphasize that any reprisal constitutes a violation of the State’s obligation to cooperate with the Subcommittee under the Optional Protocol. The Subcommittee therefore urges the State to ensure that there are no reprisals following the visit. In this connection, the Subcommittee wishes to draw the attention of the authorities to the Subcommittee’s policy on reprisals in relation to its visiting mandate (CAT/OP/6/Rev.1). 13. The Subcommittee condemns any act of reprisal. It reiterates the recommendations made in connection with its preliminary observations, and stresses that persons who provide information to or cooperate with national or international agencies or institutions should not suffer adverse consequences for having done so. The Subcommittee requests the State party to include in its reply information on the steps taken to prevent and investigate possible acts of reprisal. 4