E/CN.4/1998/38 page 32 Observations 157. The Special Rapporteur appreciates the responses from the Government. He continues to believe that his observations of last year remain applicable (E/CN.4/1997/7, paras. 157-158). Republic of Korea 158. By letter dated 11 June 1997, the Special Rapporteur advised the Government that he had received information indicating that the use of sleep deprivation and threats against detainees undergoing interrogation by police in the Republic of Korea were routine. Some detainees were also allegedly subjected to beatings. Because detainees were not always permitted to see lawyers prior to or during interrogation and because the families of detainees were not always informed of the place of detention, many detained persons were said to have been held in what amounts to prolonged incommunicado detention, a condition which facilitates torture and other ill-treatment. Detainees were allegedly unable to gain prompt access to a judge under the criminal procedure law in force, as such access was said to be determined upon written application by the prosecution or on the initiative of the judge. According to information received at the time, suspects may be detained for up to 30 days prior to indictment or for up to 50 days in the cases of persons first detained for some offences under the National Security Law. Courts were said often to fail to inquire into allegations by defendants that their “confessions” had been obtained while undergoing interrogation under torture or other ill-treatment and such “confessions” were frequently admitted as evidence at trial. 159. In response to these allegations, the Government denied in its letter of 15 September 1997 that torture and other forms of ill-treatment were committed during interrogation. It stated that both the Constitution and the Criminal Code prohibit torture and inhumane treatment and that the revised Penal Procedure Code of 1995 obligated the prosecutor to inspect regularly detention facilities of police stations and confinement areas of any investigating bureau. The Constitution and Penal Procedure Code also provided that the defence counsel or family of a suspect or accused under arrest or detention had to be notified without delay regarding the charges and the reasons for, the time and the place of the arrest or detention. Under no circumstances could contact with family or counsel be denied. With respect to the detention periods, the Government stated that the maximum detention period for a general crime was 30 days. The maximum detention period at a police station and public prosecutor's office was 10 days at each place respectively. The detention period at a public prosecutor's office could be extended an additional 10 days with the approval of a judge. For some offences under the National Security Law requiring long-term, specialized investigations and information-gathering procedures, the maximum detention period could be extended to 50 days with a judge's permission. The Government further stated that the Constitution and the Penal Procedure Code both stipulate that confessions likely to have been extracted involuntarily due to torture, for example, could not be admitted as evidence of guilt. Any person who had suffered torture or inhumane treatment could file a complaint with the judicial authorities and if it related to the scope of duty of a public official, demand compensation from the State. This said, the Government added