taken by a three-member court composed of a presiding jUdge and two other judges. Public prosecutors enjoyed the same status as jUdgeB and, like the latter, were appointed for life and subject only to the authority of 4 disciplinary council composed of senior judges and prosecutors. 144. The representative stated that after the fall of the dictatorship in his country, special legislation had been enacted to provide compensation f~r the victims and that, in particular, disability pensions had been awarded to victims of torture. Torturers had been tried and received harsh sentenceB. No amnesty law had been adopted for acts committed under the colonels' regime, but acts for which no proceedings had yet been instituted were subject to prescription in accordance with the conditions established by the Penal Code. 145. Referring to article 2 of the Convention, the represeutative stated that the trial of persons accused of a crLme had to take place within 12 months after the Warr6Qt of pre-trial detention had been issued. Such warrants could be eatended to 18 months and the accused was entitled to appeal against them. A person arrested llagronte delicto or pursuant to a warrant had to be brought before the eaamining magistrate within 24 hours. Police officers were both authorized and bound to arrest any person in the act of committing a crime. From tne time of arrest, the accused enjoyed all the rights of detainees including the ri9ht to consult and be defended by a lawyer of his choice. Investigating authorities were bound to inform the accused of his rights. Failure to observe the rights of an arrested person was punishable by up to five years' imprisonment. The provision whereby the order of a senior officer constituted no justification for an unlawful act had been incorporated in the Greek Pen~l Code in 1984. 146. Wit~ regard to article 3 of the Convention, the representative referred to a document submitted to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees containing the Greek ~efinition of a rofugee and the conditions in which asylum w~s granted by Greek authorities. The document was available to the Committee. He pointed out that the length of the procedure for the granting of asylum varied from case to case. 147. Referring to a:ticle 4 of that, in accordance with Greek five years' imp~isonment and a the death penalty. In Greece, the ~onvention, the representative indicatftd law, an offence was punishable by up to crime by more than five years' imprisonment or torture was a crime. 148. With regard to universal jurisdiction, the representative explained that article 2 of the Gree~ law ratifying the Convention eapressly provided that Greek criminal legislation applied to nationals and to foreigners for any offeDce that was coveced by article 4 of the Convention, in accordance with the conditions laid down in article 8 of thdt instrument. The law in question recognized the jurisdiction of Gree~ courts in respect of complaints of acts of torture regardless of where they had be6n committed. According to the Greek Code of Criminal Procedure, if a crime that was punishable universally and by Greek law had been committed ~broad by a foreigner who was in Greek territory, the Greek courts had jurisdiction to try that crime without e.traditing the accused. In accordance with article 8 of the Greek Penal Code, Oreek courts had jurisdiction in re5pect of any criminal act for which international treaties ratified by Greece provided for the application of Greek criminal legislation, regardless of the uationality of the person who -2R-