COMMITTEE AGAINST TORTURE BEGINS REVIEW OF REPORT OF ARGENTINA

16 November 2004

The Committee against Torture this morning began its consideration of the fourth periodic report of Argentina on the efforts of that country to give effect to the provisions of the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment.

Rodolfo Mattarollo, Chief of the Cabinet of Advisers for the Secretary of Human Rights in the Ministry of Justice, Security and Human Rights of Argentina, said democracy and human rights were a priority in the work of the police and judicial officials in Argentina. Torture and the treatment of persons in detention, he said, was a cause of great alarm to the Government which understood that there was a need for changes in the fight against impunity, particularly involving cases committed under the former military dictatorship.

Mr. Mattarollo added that the rule of law was a priority for the Argentine Government; however, crimes against humanity committed by public officials of the State still went unpunished. There was a need to bring these suspects to justice and as a result there had been a number of initiatives taken by the State to ensure this while directly applying human rights standards.

Serving as Rapporteur for the report of Argentina was Committee Expert Claudio Grossman who thanked the delegation for the information provided in the report and in the oral responses. He asked questions on several subjects including registers documenting cases of torture and illegal detention in Argentina, the extradition of military officers accused of crimes during the former military dictatorship, and cases of abuse against marginalized groups.

Julio Prado Vallejo, the Committee Expert serving as Co-Rapporteur for the report, noted that the situation in Argentina had improved considerably following the end of the military dictatorship and paid tribute to the President of the Republic for the measures he had put in motion to deal with the serious problems facing the nation. Among the issues he drew attention to were the excessive use of force by the police, prison overcrowding, the presumption of innocence by the police and the arrest of street children by the police.

Other Committee Experts raised questions on issues pertaining to, among other things, preventive detention, asylum seekers, extradition policies, rape committed by police officials and cases of disappeared children.

Also representing the delegation of Argentina were representatives of the Ministry of Justice, the Office of the Secretary of Human Rights, the Ministry of Foreign Relations, the Office of the Procurator General and the Permanent Mission of Argentina to the United Nations Office at Geneva.

The delegation will return to the Committee at 4 p.m. on Wednesday, 17 November, to provide its response to the questions raised this morning.

Argentina is among the 138 States parties to the Convention and as such it must present periodic reports to the Committee on how it is implementing the provisions of the Convention.

When the Committee reconvenes at 10 a.m. on Wednesday, 17 November, it will begin its review of the fourth periodic report of the United Kingdom (CAT/C/67/Add.2).

Report of Argentina

According to the fourth periodic report of Argentina, found in document CAT/C/55/Add.7, the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment is recognized as having constitutional rank in Argentina. Among the legislation referred to in the report is an act on the execution of custodial sentences which supplements the Criminal Code of the State and provides that “the sentence shall be carried out without resort to cruel, inhuman, or degrading treatment”. Also mentioned is the Act on International Cooperation in Criminal Matters which stipulates that extradition shall not be admissible “should there be justified grounds for believing that the wanted person may be subjected to torture or other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment”. However, Argentina recognizes torture as an extraditable offence provided that guarantees of due process are furnished and the requirements for granting extradition are met.

The unlawfulness of torture and other cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment or punishment is expressly covered in the general rules or instructions concerning the duties and functions of those serving in the police forces. The prohibitions of such ill-treatment and corresponding penalties are laid down in several legislative guidelines including the Code of Conduct for Law Enforcement Officials, the report states. The Buenos Aires Prison Plan, among other things, involves measures to dignify people deprived of their liberty by improving their conditions of accommodation and treatment. The amendment to the Federal Prison Service Organization Act aims to bring about a cultural change in the Federal Prison Service by including among its institutional responsibilities not only security, custody and surveillance but also the treatment of prisoners for their social rehabilitation. The Office of the Government Procurator for the Prison System, the report says, is tasked to investigate individual or collective complaints or claims from persons detained in units of the Federal Prison Service with the aim of guaranteeing and protecting their rights as recognized and assured in Argentine positive law.

The report refers to the setting up of the Prison Ethics Committee and the Office of care for prisoners and their families in 2000 which receive complaints of dereliction of duty, misconduct or corruption of officials in the State’s prison service and deal with the daily problems facing inmates and their families, respectively. Also highlighted is the Ad Hoc Committee of Prosecutors set up by the Office of the Procurator-General of the Nation (“Truth Committee”) which, among other things, cooperates in the investigations conducted by the prosecutors in the cases concerning “establishment of the truth” of the facts relating to human rights violations between 1976 and 1983. The report goes on to say that during the year 2001, a lot of evidence was heard with a view to determining the truth regarding the events under investigation and the fate of the persons who disappeared under the last military dictatorship. Another committee of prosecutors has been tasked with working on cases concerning the abduction of minors.

Presentation of Report

RODOLFO MATTAROLLO, Chief of the Cabinet of Advisers for the Secretary of Human Rights in the Ministry of Justice, Security and Human Rights of Argentina, said democracy and human rights were a priority in the work of the police and judicial officials in Argentina. Torture and the treatment of persons in detention was a cause of great alarm to the Government which understood that there was a need for changes in the fight against impunity, particularly concerning cases committed under the former military dictatorship. This realization was crucial for the present and the future of the country, he added.

The rule of law was a priority for the Argentine Government; however, crimes against humanity committed by public officials of the State still went unpunished. There was a need to bring these suspects to justice and as a result there had been a number of initiatives taken by the State to ensure this while directly applying human rights standards.

He listed as noteworthy the revision of the Supreme Court of Justice under President Nestor Kirchner, as well as the revision of the armed forces, the police and security forces; the parliamentary annulment of amnesty laws was another example of what the State had been doing to uphold human rights in Argentina. Argentina had reopened throughout the country over 300 legal cases concerning more than 60 military officers who were charged with having committed crimes against humanity during the last military dictatorship.

Mr. Mattarollo drew attention to the fact that, in addition to the Convention against Torture, Argentina had ratified a number of protocols and international instruments related to human rights, adding that the President had just signed and sent to the United Nations Secretary-General an instrument for ratification of the optional protocol to the Convention against Torture.

Response by Delegation

The delegation then responded to a series of written question prepared by the Committee in advance and sent to the State party beforehand.

Concerning the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court, the delegation indicated that an interdepartmental study commission had been set up by the Government to adapt the internal legislation to the provisions of the Statute. The commission had prepared a preliminary draft law on international crimes which was currently being considered by the Chamber of Senators.

Asked whether a register recording information from all the courts throughout the country on cases of illegal detention and ill-treatment had been established, the delegation indicated that the Public Prosecutors Office, the Ministry of Justice and the Office for Repeat Defenders had been involved in collecting information in this regard. The Secretary for Human Rights had set up a database of legal cases on torture to which 15 of the 23 provinces in Argentina responded. This database covered the period from 1998 to 2001 and looked at cases of deprivation of liberty committed by public officials; as a result of this exercise 13 convictions had been handed down. Moreover, the Department of Statistics had investigated cases handled in Buenos Aires between 1998 and 2002 and had determined that out of 13, 000 cases, only three had to do with torture.

With regard to a question on the uniform application of the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment in various areas of the country, the delegation noted that Argentina was a country where the provinces had precedence over the nation. A bill was being considered that provided that torture represented a crime that fell under federal justice, which aimed to homogenize case law in this area.

Asked to discuss the current situation of those members of the armed or security forces who were accused or sentenced by national or foreign courts for human rights violations during the last military dictatorship, the delegation affirmed that one aspect of the Government’s policy was to fight impunity for these individuals and measures had been taken to ensure this. The delegation noted that none of these accused persons were currently serving in public office, adding that all military promotions were subjected to the Secretary for Human Rights.

With regard to the Buenos Aires province, the delegation was asked what measures had been taken by the provincial Office of the Secretary for Human Rights to combat torture and ill-treatment in prisons, and whether they had any effect. In response, the delegation said that in April 2002, a decree by the Governor of the Buenos Aires province had enacted a programme for the prevention of torture which was designed to implement policies to encourage humanitarian treatment. A programme was also being developed to ensure that justice was provided to victims of abuses committed by public officers and that they had access to legal aid. Officials of the Ministry of Justice made frequent unannounced visits to penal and psychiatric institutions in the province and confidential interviews were conducted with prisoners. Free telephone lines were also made available in prison institutions to allow prisoners to report their concerns; these concerns revolved around the situations of health, family reunification and ill-treatment, among other things. If there were violations, an investigation was carried out and the necessary administrative body was informed when public officers were the subjects of a complaint. In general, various measures were taken by the Government to ensure the safety of the victims, the delegation added.

Concerning the detention of foreign asylum seekers, the delegation noted that as per the new immigration law now in force in Argentina, detaining a foreigner was a matter of the Ministry of Justice. The new law also resolved to suspend the expulsion of foreigners who were nationals of neighbouring countries. The delegation added that from 2003 to mid-2004, some 34,000 residence permits were issued to foreign nationals.

With regard to the physical conditions and overcrowding in prisons, the delegation said the Government was concerned about the situation of overcrowding in prisons and had taken efforts to limit prison sentences and to limit overcrowding in prison stations as well. As of early November this year, there were just over 9,000 detainees in federal prisons, which was slightly over the actual capacity of the State. To address this issue, the President had presented a plan for the overhaul of the prison system which envisaged the creation of another 18 prisons throughout the country.

On the subject of the detention of minors, the delegation noted that some 2,500 complaints had been reported involving ill-treatment of minors in detention facilities. The Secretary for Human Rights proposed that a new law should be passed to protect minors and adolescents in conflict with the law.

Asked to indicate the maximum duration of imprisonment under the law, the delegation indicated that terms of preventive detention could be extended for an extra year in special cases where reaching a verdict proved to be complicated. The high percentage of detainees held in these type of detention was a cause of concern, the delegation said; some 80 per cent of all detainees in the State.

In response to a question, the delegation noted that there had been abuses by police officials during the arrest of citizens and investigations had been conducted as a result. In the context of a commission of prosecutors, the Government had been able to convict public officials and police officers for such abuses of power.

Asked to provide information about mechanisms to investigate cases of torture committed by public officials, the delegation said a series of mechanisms had been set up to add to the control of the prison system so that they were more efficient. This was carried out through the office of the Prison Procurator, an independent body which had non-traditional powers. Requests for special information and an inspection mechanism were also part of the powers of the office of the Procurator. The contribution of the Procurator was taken into account in decisions of the Supreme Court. Moreover, the Procurator enjoyed immunity and had powers to prosecute and bring forward complaints.

With regard to a question about reparation, the delegation said Argentina had a policy of legislative and administrative reparation for human rights violations committed under the military dictatorship, such as cases involving disappearances and abuse by public officials. Recently the Government decided to pay reparations for children born to mothers who had disappeared under this regime. There had been over 14,000 beneficiaries under the law on detained persons, the delegation added.

With regard to terrorism, the delegation noted that the current Government had set up a special unit to combat acts of terrorism and it adhered to major international instruments on the issue.

Questions by Experts

CLAUDIO GROSSMAN, the Committee Expert serving as Rapporteur for the report of Argentina, after thanking the delegation for the information provided in their report and in their oral responses, asked a series of follow-up questions. Turning to article two of the Convention, he asked what the possibilities were for the creation of a register recording information from all courts on cases of illegal detention and ill-treatment. While noting that a bill had been submitted to put acts of torture and related treatment under a federal law, he asked what the expected time frame was for this law to enter into force. He also asked about the relation between all the laws which had federal rank with those of local jurisdiction.

Among the other subjects raised by the Rapporteur was the situation of the extradition of military officials to foreign countries; the effectiveness of the various seminars conducted related to the Convention; and preventive detention and whether there was any possibility for reducing the problem of prison overcrowding. In that connection, he asked what efforts had been made to allow for the transfer of children from adult penal institutions to those for minors.

Mr. Grossman indicated that the Committee had received information on a number of cases concerning the disappearances and deaths of a number of prostitutes in Mar del Plata and cases of children involved in clashes with the police who had allegedly died as a result. He also asked for clarification about the cases of ill-treatment against members of marginalized groups, in particular indigenous populations, and about the abuses and threats committed by the police against sexual minorities.

JULIO PRADO VALLEJO, the Committee Expert serving as Co-Rapporteur for the report of Argentina, thanked the delegation for their presentation which helped the Committee understand the situation in Argentina which, he said, had improved considerably following the end of the military dictatorship. He also paid tribute to the President of the Republic for the measures he had put in motion to deal with the serious problems facing Argentina.

The Co-Rapporteur noted that penalties for torture had been weakening based on decisions handed down by judges and asked for clarification on this trend. There had been a number of cases of death under torture; recently, six such cases had been reported. While noting that the basic problem was the excessive use of force by the police, the Co-Rapporteur asked for additional information. He also asked if provisions had been made to halt such practices by the police. The torture of children was another problem which required additional information.

Mr. Prado Vallejo raised the issue of impunity for public officials charged with carrying out ill-treatment and asked what efforts had been taken to combat impunity for these officials. Information was also sought about the abuse carried out by police officials by using electric shock treatment. With respect to foreigners in Argentina, the Co-Rapporteur asked whether they could be detained with a simple administrative order without being brought before a judge. According to information received, in 2002, the Argentine authorities expelled some 1,400 foreigners without providing them with an opportunity to make their case. The Co-Rapporteur asked for information in this regard.

Mr. Prado Vallejo also asked for clarification as to the period of time a person could be detained under the law. Other areas of concern raised were the situation of prison overcrowding; the presumption of innocence by the police; the situation of preventive detention; and the arrest of street children by police as well as for the arrest of foreigners.

Several Committee Experts raised questions pertaining to the situation of preventive detention, given that some 80 per cent of those in detention in Argentina were reported to be in this type of detention. Others asked for information regarding the situation of asylum seekers, extradition measures, body searches of family members visiting a relative in prison and rape conducted by police officials.

While praising the creation by the Government of Argentina of a commission to deal with cases of disappeared children, a Committee Expert asked for more information on the progress. He also asked for information about the situation of children held in police stations.