A/HRC/34/54/Add.3 507. The Special Rapporteur regrets that the Government of the United States of America has not replied to the present communication, thereby failing to cooperate with the mandate issued by the Human Rights Council in its resolution 25/13. 508. In the absence of information to the contrary, the Special Rapporteur concludes that there is substance in the allegations presented in the initial communication, available via the link above, and is therefore of the view that the Government of the United States of America, by engaging in the systematic use of excessive and unnecessary force, including in the form of physical beatings and mistreatment resulting in death; corporal punishment; the use of prolonged solitary confinement; and the failure to provide adequate medical health and support services, and basic needs including food and water, to prisoners with psychosocial disabilities in prisons and jails, has violated their rights to be free from torture or cruel or degrading treatment as provided by Article 1, 2 and 16 of the Convention against Torture (CAT). 509. In the Special Rapporteur’s interim report to the General Assembly of 5 August 2011 (A/66/268), he defined solitary confinement, in accordance with the Istanbul Statement on the Use and Effects of Solitary Confinement, as the physical and social isolation of individuals who are confined to their cells for 22 to 24 hours a day. He observed that while solitary confinement for short periods of time may be justified under certain circumstances, with adequate and effective safeguards in place, the use of prolonged (in excess of 15 days) or indefinite solitary confinement may never constitute a legitimate instrument of the State, as it causes severe mental and physical pain or suffering. The Special Rapporteur recalls paragraph 28 of the General Assembly resolution 68/156, stating that prolonged or indefinite solitary confinement runs afoul of the absolute prohibition of torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment. Furthermore, due to the prisoner’s lack of communication, as well as the lack of witnesses inside the prison, solitary confinement may also give rise to other acts of torture or ill-treatment. 510. The Special Rapporteur highlights the Basic Principles for the Treatment of Prisoners which stresses that “all prisoners shall be treated with the respect due to their inherent dignity and value as human beings” (General Assembly resolution 45/111). The Special Rapporteur further stresses that “solitary confinement is a harsh measure which may cause serious psychological and physiological adverse effects” and therefore solitary confinement has been found to be “contrary to one of the essential aims of the penitentiary system, which is to rehabilitate offenders and facilitate their reintegration into society” (A/66/268, para. 79). 511. With respect to the conditions of imprisonment, the Special Rapporteur further directs the Government to the Nelson Mandela Rules (the United Nations Standard Minimum Rules for the Treatment of Prisoners), which establish minimum standards of healthy accommodation (Rule 13) and adequate and prompt provision of health care (Rules 24 and 27). The Special Rapporteur further highlights that the U.N. Standard Minimum Rules for the Treatment of Prisoners (“Mandela Rules”) establish that “Prisoners who require specialized treatment . . . shall be transferred to specialized institutions or to civil hospitals” (Rule 27(1)). 512. The Special Rapporteur urges the Government of the United States of America to fulfil its obligations under the CAT by immediately taking the necessary measures to protect the physical and psychological integrity of its detainees, to provide adequate redress to the victims, and to undertake effective measures to prevent the recurrence of these acts. The Special Rapporteur strongly urges the Government to put an immediate end to the mistreatment and torture of persons with psychosocial disabilities in 92