[prisoner-rights] CAT 37th session: Committee against Torture considers follow-up to communications and concluding observations

UNITED NATIONS Press release
Committee against Torture 
22 November 2006 

The Committee against Torture this afternoon considered the issue of
follow-up to individual communications and to concluding observations,
hearing oral presentations by Committee Members on each topic.

Presenting the report on follow-up to individual communications, Committee
Expert Fernando Mariño Menendez said the report noted that some
countries had not replied yet to requests for information, and details on
which countries were concerned were contained in the report. In
particular, reference was made to six cases, involving five countries, in
which the Committee had requested that measures be taken. Those cases
involved individual complaints lodged against Canada, France, Serbia and
Montenegro, Senegal and Sweden.

Mr. Marino concluded by saying that there was not much more that could be
done in cases where States parties did not reply, except to send reminder
letters. The Chairperson then added that there was also always the
possibility of asking for an interview with a representative of the State
party.

On follow-up to conclusions and reservations, Committee Member Felice Gaer
recalled that at the May 2005 session (34th session) the Committee had
begun the process of designating a set of conclusions for follow-up
purposes, of a serious nature, which could be accomplished in a one-year
period, and were of a protective nature, and the Committee then asked the
State party to provide a response within a year. Since then, the Committee
had asked 25 State parties to provide follow-up information on concluding
observations.

To date, the Committee had received replies from 17 States parties, and
that was a good sign that the process was working. Indeed, one reply had
been received this very morning. As of this session replies from eight
State parties thus remained outstanding, but at the end of this session a
further seven follow up replies would fall due, Ms. Gaer recalled.

When the Committee next reconvenes in public to formally close its
thirty-seventh session, at 10 a.m. on Friday, 24 November, it is scheduled
to discuss its programme of work for future sessions and to present its
concluding observations on the reports of Tajikistan, Mexico, Burundi,
Russian Federation, South Africa, Guyana and Hungary, which it considered
during the present session.

* *** * 

For use of the information media; not an official record