Finally, after giving a recap of the CGLPL's past ten years, she urged the participants to take up new
challenges posed by: the state of emergency, terrorism, migration and a world where those who
defend the rights of detained people are finding it increasingly difficult to make themselves heard.
An initial panel discussion laid bare the urgent need for an external perspective on detention
that was sensed at the end of the 20th century owing to a growing awareness of the state of prisons dubbed the "shame of the Republic". The need to establish an independent, external oversight of
prison conditions was thus confirmed. At the same time, the international community was developing
its tools for combating inhuman and degrading treatment. Accordingly, the States Parties to the
Optional Protocol to the Convention against Torture and other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading
Treatment or Punishment committed to setting up a national preventive mechanism tasked with
conducting inspections in "any place [...] where persons are or may be deprived of their liberty, either
by virtue of an order given by a public authority or at its instigation or with its consent or
acquiescence [...] with a view to strengthening, if necessary, the protection of these persons against
torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment". This twofold momentum
culminated in the passing of the Act of 30 October 2007.
This panel discussion was followed by a contribution from Jean-Marie Delarue, Honorary
State Councillor, Chief Inspector of places of deprivation of liberty from 2008 to 2014, who went
back over the choices made when the CGLPL was founded and gave a report of his six years in
office.
The afternoon was opened by a contribution from Didier Fassin, Professor of Social Sciences
at Princeton's Institute for Advanced Study, Course Director at the School of Advanced Studies in the
Social Sciences (EHESS) who, describing the CGLPL's founding as a democratic requirement, placed
this in the context of the "tension existing in contemporary societies, particularly French society,
namely the simultaneous deployment, in recent times, of the Criminal State, which is taking an ever
harsher and more inequitable line […], and the Liberal State, which is both more mindful of
respecting rights within its institutions, at least from a formal point of view, and more concerned with
individual accountability, to the detriment of a sociological approach to social worlds."
This was followed by a panel discussion on the shaping of the legitimacy of the institution
which, created from scratch to assume a completely new role, had to make methodological, human
and legal choices. Such legitimacy is grounded in long and numerous inspections and extensive
exchanges of letters with people deprived of their liberty. These choices have shored up its
independence and place as a national preventive mechanism. Since it was established, nearly 1,400
inspections of places of deprivation of liberty and the examination of more than 30,000 case referrals
demonstrate the hard work and dedication of the CGLPL on a daily basis.
The day ended with a preview of the film 12 jours (12 days) by Raymond Depardon. This
sheds light on the views of patients sectioned in psychiatric hospitals expressed during hearings with
the liberty and custody judge, which take place within twelve days of the placement measure being
enacted. This showing was followed by a discussion with the director and his crew.
The next day, an initial panel discussion presented the CGLPL from the perspective of the
other bodies it works with. Operating as it does within an already complex landscape, the CGLPL has
had to organise its interaction with the existing bodies: the government, which has a duty to protect
the rights of those it provides for, the courts and non-governmental organisations. Raised from the
outset, the questions of ensuring complementarity between the CGLPL's work and the bodies it
works with, the formal or informal organisation of intermediaries and even the risk of conflict
assumed between the institutional stakeholders are still relevant today.
During a second panel discussion, an assessment was made of ten years of change in
fundamental rights - between progress and impasse. The CGLPL's work has raised the profile of
people deprived of their liberty, brought about changes in the law, enabled improvements in the day106
Select target paragraph3
Connect to a paragraph
Connect to an entity
Disable highlights
Add to table of contents