CCPR/C/118/D/2157/2012 possession had already been sent to him. 9 It thus became clear that the most senior army officers were refusing to open an investigation into the facts of the case before them, of which they could not be unaware given the widespread nature of this type of practice. 2.21 Although Mohammed Belamrania’s execution is obviously criminal in nature, both the Gendarmerie and the justice system failed to conduct an appropriate investigation. They are thus responsible for failing not only to comply with the State party’s international commitments but also to enforce its domestic legislation, given that article 63 of the Code of Criminal Procedure states that “when an offence is brought to their attention, criminal police officers, acting either on the instructions of the public prosecutor or on their own initiative, shall undertake preliminary inquiries.”10 2.22 Despite all the family’s efforts, no serious investigation has been undertaken, nor have those responsible for Mohammed Belamrania’s execution been held to account. Subsidiarily, the author emphasizes that it is now legally impossible, in the light of the promulgation of Order No. 06-01 on the implementation of the Charter for Peace and National Reconciliation, for him to bring an action before the judicial authorities, with the result that not only have domestic remedies proved useless and ineffective, they have now become totally unavailable. The Charter stipulates that “no one, whether in Algeria or abroad, has the right to use or make use of the wounds caused by the national tragedy in order to undermine the institutions of the People’s Democratic Republic of Algeria, weaken the State, impugn the integrity of all the agents who have served it with dignity, or tarnish the image of Algeria abroad” and rejects “all allegations holding the State responsible for deliberate disappearances”. The Charter further provides that “reprehensible acts on the part of agents of the State, which have been punished by law whenever they have been proved, cannot be used as a pretext to discredit the security forces as a whole, who were doing their duty for their country with the support of its citizens”. 2.23 The author further argues that, since the Order implementing the Charter for Peace and National Reconciliation, promulgated on 27 February 2006, prohibits the opening of legal proceedings, on pain of criminal prosecution, the victims are relieved of any obligation to exhaust domestic remedies. Article 45 of the Order in fact prohibits any complaint of disappearance or other offences, stipulating that “no individual or class action may be taken against members of any branch of the defence and security forces of the Republic for actions carried out to protect persons and property, safeguard the nation and preserve the institutions of the People’s Democratic Republic of Algeria”. Pursuant to this provision, all reports and complaints must be found inadmissible by the competent judicial authority. Furthermore, article 46 of the Order establishes that “anyone who, through his or her spoken or written statements or any other act, uses or makes use of the wounds caused by the national tragedy to undermine the institutions of the People’s Democratic Republic of Algeria, weaken the State, impugn the honour of its agents who served it with dignity or tarnish the image of Algeria abroad shall be liable to a term of imprisonment of 3 to 5 years and a fine of 250,000 to 500,000 Algerian dinars. Criminal proceedings shall be automatically initiated by the public prosecutor’s office. The penalty shall be doubled for repeat offences.” 2.24 The author adds that the effect of this law is to grant amnesty for crimes committed in the past decade, including the worst offences such as summary executions. Moreover, the law prohibits, subject to a penalty of imprisonment, the use of the justice system to establish the fate of victims. 11 In other words, the Algerian authorities, including the judicial system, are manifestly refusing to establish the responsibility of the armed forces, members of which carried out the summary execution of Mohammed Belamrania, a refusal which counters the effectiveness of the remedies sought by the family. 9 10 11 GE.17-04240 Letter enclosed by the author. Order No. 66-155 of 8 June 1966 on the amended Code of Criminal Procedure. The author refers to the Committee’s concluding observations on the third periodic report of Algeria, which state that “Order No. 06-01 …, which prohibits any prosecution of members of the defence or security force, seems thus to promote impunity and infringe the right to an effective remedy” (see CCPR/C/DZA/CO/3, paras. 7 and 8). 5