Situation during the visit (A/HRC/13/39/Add.3, A/HRC/16/52/Add.2) Players in criminal justice system do not denounce cases of torture; Penalties for torture are not commensurate. Information received in the reporting period Non-governmental sources: The authorities introduced a number of measures intended to prevent torture, including widening access to places of detention to independent public monitors and committing publicly to a policy of Government: A number of normative-legal zero tolerance on torture. acts on combating torture and protecting detainees‘ rights were adopted, including: During the UPR review in February 2010, the Government - Law of the Republic of Kazakhstan of 10 delegation reiterated that the Kazakhstani authorities were December 2009, ―On amending and committed to a policy of zero tolerance on torture, and that supplementing several legal acts with a view they ―would not rest until all vestiges of torture had been of improving the system of execution of fully and totally eliminated‖. punishment and the correctional system‖; - Decree No 1039 of the President ―On the However, human rights and prison reform monitors report measures of increasing the effectiveness of that the public condemnation of torture has been confined the judiciary and law enforcement bodies in to statements and directives by national entities and the Republic of Kazakhstan‖; officials, such as the Office of the Prosecutor General in - Government decree No 71 of February the capital Astana, senior officials at the Ministries of 2010, approving the Government‘s Plan of Internal Affairs and Justice, the Presidential Action for 2010-2012 on the Administration. At regional and local levels no such public implementation of the recommendation of statements have reportedly been made and human rights the UN Committee against Torture; monitors have expressed serious concern that directives - Normative decree No 7 of the Supreme from central national offices are not implemented by Court of 28 December 2009 ―On the regional and local law enforcement forces. administration of criminal and criminalprocedural norms on the issues of personal liberties and freedoms, personal security and dignity, fight against torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment‖; - The Prosecutor General‘s decree No 7 of 1 February 2010 about ―Instructions on revision of complaints about torture and other illegal methods of ill-treatment of persons involved in criminal proceedings and deprived of their liberty, and their A/HRC/19/61/Add.3 166 Recommendation (A/HRC/13/39/Add.3) Impunity (para. 80) (a) Publicly condemn torture and illtreatment and unequivocally state that torture is a serious crime, in order to rebalance the current situation, where criminals are easily deprived of their liberty, often for very long periods, whereas law enforcement officials who break the law receive lenient sentences.