COMMITTEE AGAINST TORTURE BEGINS REVIEW OF REPORT OF CYPRUS

CAT
29th session
15 November 2002
Morning




The Committee against Torture began consideration this morning of a third periodic report of Cyprus, congratulating a Government delegation on vigorous efforts made by the country to respect and promote human rights and asking, among other things, about allegations of ill-treatment of some asylum-seekers by police officers and about national procedures for pre-deportation detention.
The Committee requested the results of investigations carried out into the allegations of maltreatment of asylum seekers.
Introducing the Cypriot report, Lazaros Savvides, Director-General of the Ministry of Justice and Public Order, said among other things that Cyprus was particularly sensitive to human rights because rights of the people of Cyprus had been and still were being flagrantly violated by occupation forces in the northern part of the island.
The head of delegation told the Committee that under legislation now before Parliament, there would be a presumption that a person arrested or in custody had been ill-treated if it was ascertained by medical examination that the person had any external injuries which were not present at the time of his admission at the police station. Various Committee members welcomed this provision and said it went beyond the requirements of the Convention against Torture.
Other members of the Cypriot delegation were Alexandros N. Vikis, Ambassador, Permanent Representative of Cyprus to the United Nations Office at Geneva; Costas Hadjipavlou, Senior Administrative Officer of the Ministry of Justice and Public Order; Frances-Galatia Lanitou Williams, Counsellor and Deputy Permanent Representative of Cyprus to the United Nations Office at Geneva; Theano Mavromoustaki, Counsel of the Law Office of the Republic of Cyprus; and Helena Mina, Second Secretary of the Permanent Mission of Cyprus.
The delegation will respond to the Committee’s questions at 3 p.m. Monday, 18 November.
As one of the 131 States parties to the Convention against Torture, Cyprus must provide periodic reports to the Committee on efforts to put the Convention into effect.
The Committee will reconvene in public session at 3 p.m. to hear replies from a delegation of Estonia to questions posed Thursday upon presentation of the country’s initial report.

Report of Cyprus
The third periodic report of Cyprus (CAT/C/54/Add.2) provides new information relating to implementation of various articles of the Convention. It describes enactment of a new law on mental health, amendment of the Criminal Procedure Law, and enactment of a new law providing for the suppression of trafficking in persons and of sexual exploitation. It states that a Psychiatric Treatment Law of 1997 treats a mental patient as any other person, whereas under the old law such a patient was treated as a criminal.
The report states that a new law for the prevention of domestic violence and the protection of victims introduces provisions regarding the taking of statements by audio-visual means. The report notes that statements obtained by the use of these means may be produced as evidence without the need to examine the chief witness in court. Courts are also empowered to provide protection to witnesses and victims of violence by taking their evidence in such way as to avoid direct confrontation with the accused but without depriving the accused of his right to examine the witness. This may by achieved by the use of screens, closed-circuit television links and other means.
Under the Aliens and Immigration Law, a person awaiting deportation may not be detained for a period of more than eight days unless the court authorizes detention for a longer period. The report notes that this provision is under revision and a bill is pending to provide for the intervention of the court regarding the duration of such a period of detention.

Introduction of report
LAZAROS SAVVIDES, Director-General of the Ministry of Justice and Public Order of the Republic of Cyprus, said Cyprus was particularly sensitive about protecting human rights because the rights of the people of Cyprus had been and still were being flagrantly violated by occupation forces in the northern part of the island.
The head of the delegation said the Government had tabled a Bill in Parliament on 3 October 2002 to make cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment within the meaning of the Convention a criminal offence. In addition, under this legislation there would be a presumption that a person arrested or in custody had been ill-treated by a member of the police if it was ascertain by medical examination that the person had any external injuries which were not present at the time of his admission at the police station. If no reasonable explanation for these injuries was provided, the officers concerned could be charged with a criminal offence.
A Protection of Witnesses Law had been passed by the House of Representatives and practical measures were already being taken to secure anonymity of witnesses. Mr. Savvides also informed the Committee members that the death penalty had been eradicated from the statute book of Cyprus through its abolition in relation to offences committed in time of war or imminent threat of war.
Mr. Savvides said it was no longer required that a written complaint be submitted before criminal investigators could be appointed by the Attorney General to look into allegations of criminal offences by members of the police. Since 2001, the Attorney General could appoint criminal investigators in all instances of such allegation coming to his knowledge in any matter whatsoever. During the period from March 2001 to the end of June 2002, there had been 45 complaints or reports received various sources. In 22 of those cases, investigations had been completed and had determined the allegations were either unsubstantiated or lacking the evidence necessary to warrant criminal prosecution.
Mr. Savvides said that since the establishment of a Police Human Rights Office, monthly statistical data had been collected from all police divisions concerning complaints of maltreatment. Furthermore, the Cyprus Police had adhered to the Council of Europe Programme “Police and Human Rights 1997-2000” and had organized a number of seminars and in-service training programmes. During the years 1998-2001, there had been a total of 51 complaints against police officers for alleged maltreatment of civilians, suspects, accused persons in criminal cases, or prisoners. Out of these complaints, only 35 referred to physical violence.

Discussion
Serving as rapporteur on the report of Cyprus was Committee Expert Sayed Kassem El Masry, who warmly welcomed the efforts of Cyprus to try to achieve perfection in the implementation of the provisions of the Convention. He welcomed the adoption of several laws, including the Psychiatric Treatment Law, the Law for the suppression of trafficking of persons and sexual exploitation, and the abolition of the death penalty. He stressed the fact that since 1993, Cyprus had accepted article 21 of the Convention, and had made the declaration under article 22 recognizing the competence of the Committee to receive and examine communications from individuals. The country had made no reservation ot article 20 regarding confidential inquiry and had been a regular contributor to the UN Voluntary Fund for victims of Torture. Mr. El Masry underlined the absence of cases of torture over the last five years in Cyprus, and said there were no political prisoners in Cyprus.
Mr. El Masry asked among other things for more information about sequestration in isolation cells; about the results of the investigations that had followed some allegations of ill-treatment by police officers against asylum seekers; about the age of penal responsibility; about the conditions for the granting of asylum; and about conditions of pre-trial custody.
Serving as co-rapporteur on the report of Cyprus was Committee Expert YU MENGJIA, who said among other things that Cyprus was very serious in observing its responsibility to implement the Convention. He asked for more information about a case noted in the Secretary-General’s report on the human rights situation in Cyprus concerning Turkish Cypriots who reportedly had suffered inhumane treatment.
Other Committee members also put questions. They asked among other things whether Cyprus had a law which gave a precise definition of torture; whether a detainee could choose the doctor who examined him; and about the existence of a training programme for forensic doctors to help them recognize signs of torture. An expert wondered how the medical examination that took place during custody could determine the difference between injuries caused by resisting arrest and those caused by maltreatment during custody. Committee members also wished to know how many refugees and foreigners lived in Cyprus; if a register of prisoners existed; the number of persons incarcerated and their classification; if there was monitoring of sexual violence in prisons; what were the procedures for pre-deportation detention; what was done for rehabilitation of victims of torture; what was the frequency of domestic violence in the country; if statistics on the crime rate could be provided; and if pregnant women from other countries could be returned to a country where their life was threatened.



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