COMMITTEE AGAINST TORTURE BEGINS REVIEW OF REPORT OF FORMER YUGOSLAV REPUBLIC OF MACEDONIA

Committee against Torture
MORNING

7 May 2008


The Committee against Torture this morning began its consideration of the second periodic report of the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia 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.

Introducing the report, Mihajlo Manevski, Minister of Justice of the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, said that the Committee’s final observations and recommendations upon the review of the initial report had been a starting point in the formulation of their national policy. The recommendations of the Council of Europe’s Committee for the Prevention of Torture had been an additional criterion for their policy’s success in the elimination of torture related issues. The implementation of the Optional Protocol would also contribute towards the widening of the national legal framework on the fight against torture. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs had drafted a bill in ratification of the Optional Protocol which was currently under Governmental review. The bill envisaged an Ombudsman and other relevant institutions that would serve as a preventive mechanism.

Other improvements noted by Mr. Manevski were the fact that the offence of torture had been incorporated in the criminal code in 2004. Further legislative amendments had been made to strengthen the independence of the judicial system and ensure its depolitization. The penitentiary system reforms were also in line with the broader reform of the legislation on crime. The new law on execution of sanctions established a new network of penitentiary institutions whose purpose was to improve the conditions for serving prison sentence as well as to bring a higher security level and better accommodation conditions. There were plans for several prisons to be constructed and a prison personnel training centre to be built, noted Mr. Manevski.

Serving as Rapporteur for the report of the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Committee Expert Luis Gallegos Chiriboga asked for details about the case of the refoulement of Khalid El-Masri who had been handed over to the CIA in 2003. Concerns were also expressed about information the Committee had obtained about police apprehending persons without wearing any official uniform and driving in unmarked cars. Also, there was a lot of data available on the issue of sexual violence in prisons. How was this being dealt with?

Nora Sveaass the Committee Expert serving as Co-Rapporteur for the report of the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, wondered whether gender violence was also included in police and prison personnel training. As was known, a high number of women who were exposed to violence often would not talk about it. How was the police trained to confront this and encourage women to come forward with their allegations? Concerning the planned new training centre for prison personnel, when would it be opened? Further information received by the Committee indicated that investigations into allegations of ill-treatment often faced slow progress and that sometimes there was no follow-up to the investigations, especially in cases of children and Roma people. Why did the process in place not work and what was going to be done to address this?

Other issues of concern raised by Experts included whether there were plans to reduce the period of pre-trial detention, as 180 days was seen to be excessive. An Expert noted that a police officer convicted of committing torture may be sentenced to 1 to 5 years of imprisonment and might not even serve this term, whereas a minor could serve up to 10 years for less important crimes. This was not in line with balanced justice. Concerning the El-Masri case, an Expert wondered whether he could claim compensation and bring the case to a Macedonian court, as he had been apprehended by a Macedonian body. Would that be possible? Also, it was known that the Former Yugoslav Repubic of Macedonia had a treaty with the United States engaging them not to hand over United Sates agents to the International Criminal Court. Once the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia entered the European Union, would this still be valid? This was an issue as the United States and the European Union dealt differently with such issues.

Also representing the delegation of the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia were members of the Permanent Mission of the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia to the United Nations Office at Geneva, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Ministry of Labour and Social Policy, and the Ministry of Interior.

The delegation will return to the Committee at 3 p.m. on Thursday, 8 May 2008 to provide its responses to the questions raised today.

The Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia is among the 145 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 3 p.m. this afternoon, it will hear the answers of Indonesia to the questions posed by Experts on 6 May 2008.

Report of the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia

The second periodic report of the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (CAT/C/MKD/2) notes that in the process of approximation of criminal legislation with European Union standards, special emphasis was placed on the implementation of the recommendations of the Committee against Torture. One amendment to the Criminal Code passed in March 2004 reads as follows: “A person who while performing his duty, as well as a person instructed by an official person or based on an agreement of the official person, shall apply force, threat or some other unlawful instrument or an unlawful manner with the intention to force a confession or some other statement from a defendant, a witness, an expert witness or from another person, or will inflict on another person severe bodily or mental suffering, punishing him/her for an act he/she or a third person has committed or is suspected of having committed, or intimidating or coercing him/her to forfeit some of his/her rights, or shall cause such suffering due to any form of discrimination, shall be punished with imprisonment of one to five years”. Also, treatment of detainees is regulated in the Law on Criminal Procedure. The main principle is that execution of detention measures may not hurt personality and dignity of the accused and that only restrictions necessary for preventing escape or a deal that may harm successful conduct of the proceedings may be applied. Detainees have the right to 8-hour uninterrupted rest within 24 hours, as well as the right to stay in open air at least 2 hours a day. These rights are unconditional.

As part of the additional and continuous training of the police at the Ministry of Internal Affairs and within the framework of the Programme for Police Training, there is special focus on the respect for, and protection of, human rights in the performance and competences of the police, while the following issues are particularly elaborated: introduction to human rights and general human rights issues; deprivation of freedom; arrest and police custody in the context of limiting the right to freedom and the right to free movement; use of force, means of coercion and firearms in the context of protection of the right to life; human rights in the course of examination in the context of ensuring the right to fair trial and the presumption of innocence; non-discrimination in the course of police work on any grounds with a special focus on the rights of vulnerable groups, e.g. children, women, old persons and disabled persons; arbitrary interference in the private life from the aspect of protection of the right to privacy and correspondence; policing in a democratic society stressing the basis of democracy, multi-ethnic society and the police; and highlighting the rights of minorities, their representation and police ethics as a code of conduct for the actions of the police.

Presentation of Report

Mihajlo Manevski, Minister of Justice of the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, said that the Committee’s final observations and recommendations upon the review of the initial report had been a starting point in the formulation of their national policy. The recommendations of the Council of Europe’s Committee for the Prevention of Torture had been an additional criterion for their policy’s success in the elimination of torture related issues. A permanent dialogue was maintained with the Council of Europe’s Committee for the Prevention of Torture.

A number of reforms had been carried out in the criminal substantive and procedural legislation, in the justice system, the police, the fight against corruption as well as the trafficking in human beings, since the submission of the last report, said Mr. Manevski. Article 11 of the Constitution guaranteed the physical and moral integrity of the people and prohibited any form of torture, inhumane or degrading treatment and punishment as well as forced labour.

The implementation of the Optional Protocol would also contribute towards the widening of the national legal framework on the fight against torture, noted Mr. Manevski. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs had drafted a bill in ratification of the Optional Protocol which was currently under Governmental review. The bill envisaged an Ombudsman and other relevant institutions that would serve as a preventive mechanism.

Other improvements noted by Mr. Manevski were the fact that the offence of torture had been incorporated in the criminal code in 2004. Forty persons had been indicted following this step and 18 of these had been convicted for this offence between 2004 and 2006. Also, the law on criminal procedure prohibited all kinds of torture and extortion of evidence and confessions. The strategy for prevention of domestic violence was being implemented, five reception centres for victims had been opened and an SOS hotline was also operational. Further, legislative amendments had been made for strengthening the independence and for the depolitization of the judicial system.

In 2008, amendments to the criminal code strengthened the legal protection against trafficking in persons and migrants, terrorism, electronic distribution of child pornography and protection of child victims of trafficking in human beings. Mr. Manevski said that their priority for the coming period was to successfully implement the passed laws in order to secure the existence of an independent judicial system.

The penitentiary system reforms were also in line with the broader reform of the criminal legislation. The new law on execution of sanctions established a new network of penitentiary institutions whose purpose was to improve the conditions for serving prison sentence as well as to bring a higher security level and better accommodation conditions. There were plans to construct several prisons and a prison personnel training center would also be built, noted Mr. Manevski.

Questions Raised by Committee Experts

LUIS GALLEGOS CHIRIBOGA, the Committee Chairperson serving as Rapporteur for the Report of the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, said that the Committee had received the State party’s replies to the list of issues only yesterday. Concerning the right of persons detained in custody, there were three basic rights: the right to have an access to a council, the right to medical care and the right to communicate with the family. Was this the case in the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia?

Concerning the main features of the new law on police, Mr. Gallegos Chiriboga said that different civil society activists had expressed worries. It was important to ensure that no form of impunity was allowed. Also, were there plans to bring the Office of the Ombudsman in line with the Paris Principles? It was important to ensure that the Ombudsman’s investigations and recommendations were being followed-up.

Concerning the asylum law, Mr. Gallegos Chiriboga wondered whether an appeal had a suspension effect or not. Details were asked about the case of the refoulement of Khalid El-Masri who had been handed over to the CIA in 2003. Concerns were also expressed about information the Committee had obtained about police apprehending persons without wearing any official uniform and driving in unmarked cars. Also, there was a lot of data available on the issue of sexual violence in prisons. How was this being dealt with?

NORA SVEAASS, the Committee Expert serving as Co-Rapporteur for the Report of the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, said that as events were moving fast in the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, it could be that some of her questions would cover issues that were already outdated. She asked if gender violence was included in police and prison personnel training. As was known, a high number of women exposed to violence often would not talk about it. How was the police trained to confront this and to encourage women to come forward with their allegations?

Concerning the planned new training center for prison personnel, when would it be opened? Ms. Sveaass also asked questions concerning the training of border guards and border police. How were asylum centre health personnel trained with regard to detecting torture? Concerning the problem of prison overcrowding and the plans to expand existing facilties to resolve this issue, when would this construction work start? Was the State party also thinking about alternative ways of punishment in order to reduce prison overcrowding?

Ms. Sveaass noted that there seemed to be no legal procedures guiding the arrest of children. Also, regulations requested the presence of a child Ombudsperson when a child was being interrogated, but the Committee had received information that this was not always respected. Was the Ombudsman able to freely visit places of dentition where children were detained? Also, NGO information indicated that women were asked to give sexual favours to prison guards; how was this being addressed? Police brutality against Roma people had also been reported. Was the code of police ethics known enough inside the police units? How was it taught and how were violations of this code dealt with?

Further information received by the Committee indicated that investigations into allegations of ill-treatment often moved slowly and that sometimes there was no follow-up to the investigations, especially in cases of children and Roma people, said Ms. Sveaass. Why did the process in place not work and what was being done to address this?

Concerning the missing persons especially stemming from the conflict, what was the development concerning the investigation of the whereabouts of those missing people? What about the indictment of people responsible for these disappearances? Also was it correctly understood that court decisions may not be based on confessions made under ill-treatment? Finally, were there plans to update the definition of the crime of rape in order for it to cover brutal actions?

Other Committee Experts asked questions and made comments, including whether there were plans to reduce the period of pre-trial detentions, as 180 days was seen to be excessive. On the police, it had been indicated that they had the possibility to use a certain number of means available to them, including physical force, several instruments, firearms, explosives, etc. Who controlled and monitored the use of all these instruments? Was it the police themselves who should assess the situation in order to minimize consequences? Were the police authorized to use Taser guns?

Another Expert noted that a police officer who committed torture could be sentenced to 1 to 5 years of imprisonment and might not even serve this term, whereas a minor could serve to 10 years for less important crimes. This was not in line with balanced justice. Concerning amnesty, how did the laws of the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia deal with events that had happened in the past? What happened if someone was arrested and detained without a judicial order? Were Muslim Albanians able to participate in civil society?

Concerning the El-Masri case, an Expert wondered whether he could claim compensation and bring the case to a Macedonian court, as he had been apprehended by a Macedonian body. Would that be possible? Also, it was known that the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia had a treaty with the United States engaging them not to hand over United Sates agents to the International Criminal Court. Once the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia entered the European Union, would this still be valid? This was an issue as the United States and the European Union dealt differently with such issues.

Further questions were asked by Experts on how the use of firearms was regulated in the police force. Did detained foreigners have access to a legal counsellor? It was noted that half of the people prosecuted for torture had been released. Was it because it was difficult to get evidence? Or were there other reasons? Was the decision to release them a definitive decision or could they be judged again in the frame of an appeal?

NGO information had also pointed out that children were subject to violence in school and in the family. The law prohibited corporal punishment at school but not at home. Were there plans to change that law. Another law prohibited marriage under 18, but NGO information showed that State authorities ignored the situation of the Roma people, where girls under 18 were married. Lastly, could an individual go to court and request the application of the Convention against Torture?
____________

For use of the information media; not an official record