Committee against Torture begins consideration of report of Slovenia

CAT
30th session
5 May 2003
Morning




The Committee against Torture began review this morning of a second periodic report of Slovenia, praising steps to increase protections of detainees and prisoners and legislative plans to adopt a definition of maltreatment based on the standards of the Convention against Torture. Committee Experts questioned a six-member Government delegation, among other things, on allegations of abuses committed by police officers and on persistent prison overcrowding. They said the self-critical tone of the country's report was laudatory and approved of the inclusion of a chapter by the Slovenian Ombudsman on human rights issues.
Committee Experts also asked about reports of deaths during detention; about police use of firearms during arrests; and about the operations of a Complaints Commission established to look into charges of police misconduct.
Introducing the report, Aljaz Gosnar, Ambassador and Permanent Representative of Slovenia to the United Nations Office at Geneva, said among other things that an amendment now being considered by Parliament would provide greater independence for police internal investigations conducted on the suspicion that a police officer had exceeded his powers; that a several prison rules had been changed to increase inmates' security; that a new Code of Medical Ethics had been adopted; and that based on Committee recommendations, relevant Government organs were putting a greater emphasis on the human rights education of law-enforcement personnel.
Other members of the delegation were Damjan Korosec, Assistant Professor at the School of Law of the University of Ljubljana; Goran Klemencic, Senior Lecturer at the High School for Police and Security Studies; Janez Mekinc, Counsellor to the Government at the Ministry of the Interior; Peter Pavlin, Adviser of the Ministry of Justice; and Andraz Zidar, Second Secretary of the Permanent Mission of Slovenia in Geneva.
As one of 133 States parties to the Convention against Torture, Slovenia must provide periodic reports to the Committee on efforts to eradicate such maltreatment.
The Committee will reconvene at 3 p.m. to continue its consideration of the second periodic report of Turkey.

Second Periodic Report of Slovenia
The report of Slovenia (CAT/C/43/Add.4), in reviewing new developments in terms of their relation to articles of the Convention, notes among other things that neither Slovenian criminal law nor any potential incrimination norms yet incorporate any specific definition of torture, but the Committee's recommendation on the matter have led Slovenian theorists on criminal law to deal more intensively with the issue of torture in substantive criminal law. The Government will shortly be deciding on the formal invitation of a special independent expert and scientific institution to draw up an expert opinion on the possibilities of the incorporation of a specific incrimination of torture in Slovenian positive criminal law. A December 2000 decision of the Supreme Court that remand in custody may last two years at most after indictment potentially shortens remand in custody in Slovenian criminal procedures, the report notes. New rules on police powers limit police powers in official contacts with individuals and state that such powers can only be applied in a manner that does not cause harm disproportionate to their purpose and to the set legal goals of their application. A particular reference states that "The exercising of police powers may not expose any person to torture, inhumane or degrading treatment".
A number of decisions have been taken to improve conditions of overcrowding and poor living conditions in the centre used for illegal immigrants, the report states, and various media activities have been undertaken to restrict or prevent improper responses to the country's increased number of asylum-seekers. Among activities by Slovenia's Human Rights Ombudsman were the drawing of attention to an increasing use by police of restraining devices and a finding that prison overcrowding has become a serious problem. The report also deals at length with the situation of Roma in Slovenia, and states that "despite some obvious improvements in the general situation of the Roma - the Government Office of the Republic of Slovenia for Nationalities holds that their situation is not yet satisfactory".

Presentation of Report
ALJAZ GOSNAR, Ambassador and Permanent Representative of the Republic of Slovenia in Geneva, said Slovenia recently had adopted the Optional Protocol to the Convention against Torture and had ratified the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court. In October 2002, the Slovenian Parliament had adopted an Act on cooperation with the International Criminal Court, and following recommendations of the Committee, the Government had prepared a working proposal to include the definition of torture, based on article 1 of the Convention, into the Slovenian Criminal Code. This and other proposals were not being considered by relevant Government organs. In addition, Parliament recently had adopted amendments to the Act on Foreigners and the Act on Asylum to bring them into conformity with the Convention.
An Act amending the Police Act, now being considered by Parliament, would provide greater independence for police internal investigations conducted on the suspicion that a police officer had exceeded his powers, Mr. Gosnar said. Consideration of complaints would be transferred under these measures from the police to the Ministry of the Interior. If a complainant did not agree with the findings of the head of the police organizational unit, the complaint would be dealt with by the Ministry through a panel of three members, two of them being public representatives coming from civil society and a relevant trade union. In addition, several prison rules had been changed and a new Code of Medical Ethics had been adopted. And based on Committee recommendations, relevant organs were putting a greater emphasis on the human rights education of law-enforcement personnel.

Discussion
Serving as Rapporteur for the report of Slovenia was Committee Expert ALEXANDER M. YAKOVLEV, who said the report was impressive, among other things for the inclusion of a chapter providing input from the country's human rights ombudsman. Many legislative changes had been undertaken that were of value, steps had been taken to increase protection of the Roma, and a committee had been formed to consider the concerns of the country's other minorities. The concept and definition of torture was vital for implementation of the Convention, Mr. Yakovlev said, and it was very gratifying that legislation to do that was now being prepared in Slovenia.
Among Mr. Yakovlev's questions were what the contents would be of the new courses on human rights to be given to police officers; if statistics could be provided on cases of violations committed by police, and on how often complaints and prosecutions had resulted, as reports had been received that such violations or at least the use of violence by police was increasing; if medical examinations of detainees were allowed to take place in private; if there was a code of conduct for police interrogations; if extradition regulations covered persons considered to be threats to Slovenian security; what additional measures were being taken to reduce prison overcrowding, and if reduction of preliminary detention was being considered as one way of doing so; if more information could be provided on deaths during detention, including in police stations, as this appeared to be a problem; and if these deaths were investigated.
Serving as Co-Rapporteur for the Slovenian report was Committee Expert YU MENGJIA, who said a number of positive steps had been taken by the Government to implement the Convention and the Government clearly was responsive to suggestions, including the Committee's suggestions. It also was laudable that the report had a self-critical quality. Meanwhile, information received from reliable sources indicated that some problems of maltreatment persisted.
Among Mr. Yu's questions were if the country's innovative and admirable individual treatment plan for prisoners worked in practice; how seriously the opinions of the Ombudsman, which were often critical, were taken by the Government; what sorts of responses were made to the Ombudsman's opinions, including over the matter of suicides in prisons; if detainees had to be handcuffed for each trip to a court, as apparently occurred when they were taken from one detention centre; if information could be provided on a number of individual allegations, the details of which had been provided to the delegation; if the three-member Complaints Commission, one member of which was a serving police officer, might be prey to conflicts of interest; and if information could be provided on the number of cases in which persons had received compensation for maltreatment.
Other Committee members also put questions. They asked, among other things, what the rules were on the use of firearms by police during arrests and detentions and during times of civil disturbance; if Slovenia had accepted the European Framework Covenant on National Minorities; if non-governmental organizations were involved in drawing up reports to the Committee and in visiting prisons and detention centres; what was the explanation when investigations into complaints of police maltreatment "lapsed"; and if statistics could be provided on inter-prisoner violence.



* *** *