CAT/C/CHN/CO/5
whether an investigation took place on the alleged use of excessive force and other human
rights violations by military officers in Beijing following the Tiananmen Square protests,
resulting in the death of hundreds of civilians. The Committee draws the attention of the
State party to its general comment No. 3 (2013) on the implementation of article 14 by
States parties, in which it indicates that a State’s “failure to investigate, criminally
prosecute, or to allow civil proceedings related to allegations of acts of torture in a prompt
manner, may constitute a de facto denial of redress and thus constitute a violation of the
State’s obligations under article 14”. The Committee is equally concerned at the failure of
the State party to inform families of the whereabouts of their relatives who participated in
the protests and are still in detention, and of persons who have allegedly been detained for
organizing activities or expressing views to memorialize the event on the occasion of its
twenty-fifth anniversary, in 2014 (arts. 12 and 14).
54.
Recalling its previous recommendation (see CAT/C/CHN/CO/4, para. 21), the
Committee urges the State party to ensure that:
(a)
All allegations of excessive use of force, torture and other ill-treatment
perpetrated by State officials on or following the 3 and 4 June 1989 suppression of
protests are effectively, independently and impartially investigated by an independent
authority and that perpetrators are prosecuted and, if found guilty, punished;
(b)
Victims and their families obtain full reparation;
(c)
Families of those arrested or disappeared in connection with the 1989
events and its memorialization are informed of the fate of their relatives;
(d)
Victims, their families, witnesses and others who intervene on their
behalf are protected at all times against retaliation for claiming their legitimate right
to obtain redress and accountability for past violations;
(e)
The legal safeguards and due process rights of those detained in
connection with the 1989 events, or with current activities to memorialize it, should be
fully respected.
Lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex persons
55.
The Committee is concerned about reports that private and publicly run clinics offer
the so-called “gay conversion therapy” to change the sexual orientation of lesbian and gay
persons, and that such practices include the administration of electroshocks and, sometimes,
involuntary confinement in psychiatric and other facilities, which could result in physical
and psychological harm. While noting that, in December 2014, a Beijing court ordered one
such clinic to pay compensation for such treatment, the Committee regrets the State party’s
failure to clarify whether such practices are prohibited by law, have been investigated and
ended, and whether the victims have received redress (arts. 10, 12, 14 and 16).
56.
The State party should:
(a)
Take the necessary legislative, administrative and other measures to
guarantee respect for the autonomy and physical and personal integrity of lesbian,
gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex persons and prohibit the practice of so-called
“conversion therapy”, and other forced, involuntary or otherwise coercive or abusive
treatments against them;
(b)
Ensure that health professionals and public officials receive training on
respecting the human rights of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex
persons, including their rights to autonomy and physical and psychological integrity;
15