COMMITTEE AGAINST TORTURE TAKES UP REPORT OF MAURITIUS

MORNING
28.04.1999
HR/CAT/99/4



The Committee against Torture this morning took up the second periodic report of Mauritius on how that country implements the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment.

D.K. Dabee, Solicitor-General of Mauritius, told the Committee that his country had made significant strides in combatting torture since a Mauritian delegation had last appeared before the Committee four years ago. In that time, the island nation had abolished the death penalty, passed a prohibition on gender-based discrimination, and ushered in a new Government that was committed to the protection and promotion of human rights.

Andreas Mavrommatis, who served as Committee rapporteur on the report, praised some of he strides that had been made, but said the report was too brief and left too many questions unanswered. He asked pointed questions about the makeup of a new presidential commission charged with overseeing human rights in the country and implored the State to inscribe a specific definition of torture in its domestic law. Without such language, he said, there would always be a risk that torture could be overlooked in certain situations.

Sayed Kassem El Masry, Committee co-rapporteur for the report, questioned the impartiality of the new commission since the first recourse for complaints would be the police force, which was often the target of such complaints. As evidence, he pointed to statistics contained in the report that revealed that from 1995 through March 1998, there were 34 alleged cases of assault by police officers, but the number of convictions or disciplinary actions taken in response was zero. That, he said, needed to be elaborated on or justified.

Other members asked about the training of medical personnel in recognizing and treating torture victims, the compensation provided to torture victims, and the independence of the Government ombudsman appointed to oversee complaints of torture.

The Mauritian delegation will return to answer the questions put to it on Thursday, 29 April, at 3.00 p.m. The Committee will reconvene this afternoon at 3.00 p.m. to hear replies from the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia to questions put by Committee members on Tuesday.

Report of Mauritius

The second periodic report of Mauritius (CAT/C/43/Add.1) reviews progress made in the field of human rights, particularly measures to combat and prosecute torture since the Committee considered the Government's initial report in April 1995. The document also addresses Mauritius's implementation of the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment in its domestic laws on an article-by-article basis.

In the four years since it last faced the Committee, Mauritius has abolished the death penalty and amended its Constitution to prohibit any discrimination by law or public authorities on the ground of sex. Also, national election were held, and a new Government, headed by Prime Minister Dr. Navin Ramgoolam, assumed office. The new Government, the report states, emphasizes its commitment to the respect and promotion of human rights. Further, following recommendations stemming from a needs-assessment mission conducted by the High Commissioner/Centre for Human Rights, Mauritius is preparing to introduce a bill in the next Parliamentary session called the Protection of Human Rights Bill. Among other things, the bill will establish a National Human Rights Commission that will oversee all aspects of promoting and protecting human rights.

Introduction of report

D.K. DABEE, Solicitor-General of Mauritius, said that since the report had been submitted last year, there had been legislative, administrative, and judicial improvements. Ill-treatment of ordinary citizens was often at the hands of police. One of the most significant achievements of the country in recent years was the passing of the Protection of Human Rights Act last December. It provided for the setting up of a National Human Rights Commission with a branch to investigate complaints. It would be chaired by a person who had been a judge. It could investigate any written complaint from anyone who alleged his human rights were violated by someone acting in a public capacity. This lessened the chance of bias or covering up by the police. For the first time, the police were being subjected to a statutory duty to keep the independent body informed of any complaint. When it informs the commission that there is no investigation despite the presence of a complaint, the commission may take over and investigate the complaint itself.

The commission may also visit any police station or prison to study the treatment of the prisoners or detainees.

Mr. Dabee said although the precise definition of all forms of torture had not yet been adopted into legislation, it was believed that these actions would go a long way toward preventing torture.

A Presidential Commission was set up to look at reforms in the judiciary, Mr. Dabee said. Chaired by Lord Mackay of Clashferm, a former Lord Chancellor in the United Kingdom, the Commission issued a report last year and some of its recommendations already had been put into law. The Administration of Justice (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act had implemented recommendations that did not need Constitutional amendments. The Act provided for the admissibility of a sound recording of any evidence given by any accused party to an investigating officer in the course of an investigation of an offence. 'Sound recording' was defined as including recording of visual images or sound. Stringent conditions were laid down to ensure the process of tape recording of evidence was not vulnerable to tampering. It was believed that the measure would substantially address the accusations frequently levelled against law-enforcement agencies to the effect that confessions had been extracted by pressure, force, torture, or other illicit means.

Mr. Dabee said a Mental Health Care Act had been passed last year, replacing an outdated Lunacy Act whose history extended back to 1906. The new Act regulated the admission, treatment, and living conditions of mental patients, as well as the protection afforded mental patients. In particular, the concept of 'insane patients' had given way to that of 'patients suffering from a mental disorder'. More rights included the patient's right to be treated with humanity and respect for the inherent dignity of the human person, and to appeal to a Mental Health Commission and ultimately to the courts when dissatisfied with treatment or living conditions.

The Prime Minister recently had announced that an Equal Opportunities Act would soon be enacted, Mr. Dabee said. The Prime Minister also had announced introduction of a bill to create a Police Authority that would meet four times a year in public and would scrutinize the performance of the police force. The Commissioner of Police would be called upon to answer questions.

Mr. Dabee said the country's commitment was further evidenced by its contribution of $3,000 to the United Nations Voluntary Fund for Victims of Torture.

It had unfortunately not been possible, he said, to finalize the reform of extradition laws as indicated in the report. The Government's many other administrative and legislative initiatives in the social, economic, and human rights fields, as well as the inadequacy of local expertise in the highly complex area of extradition law, were mainly responsible for that situation. However, the expertise of a United Nations International Drug Control Programme (UNDCP) consultant in the broad field of mutual assistance in the context of the fight against transnational crimes had recently been sought and obtained. It was hoped there would be continued UNDCP support in the broader field of reform of the extradition laws.

Discussion

ANDREAS MAVROMMATIS, the Committee's rapporteur on the report, said the document was an improvement over the previous one, but it was still too brief. There was no section of matters that had been left unanswered.

He lauded the abolition of the death penalty. Every country that respected human rights should aim to abolish the death penalty. The prohibition of discrimination on the grounds of gender had come a bit late, but it was welcomed. The creation of the National Human Rights Commission was a most welcome step. Each country should introduce a commission like that. Of course, on the commission, the test was when it would begin issuing recommendations. One person had been mentioned to be on the commission -- the retired judge. Were there others?

Mr. Mavrommatis said it was not just the extradition act that needed amending; the statute on aliens did, too. Also, without incorporation of a definition of torture into domestic law, there would always be a possibility for abuse.


On extradition, he said, one could take the case of Pinochet. Had it not been for this Convention, the man would have been sent back to Chile. But now all dictators would think twice before they condoned torture in their countries.

Mr. Mavrommatis asked when a person in custody was able to see a lawyer? The crucial point from the point of view of torture and confession was the first few hours. And paragraph 19 of the report appeared to leave to the discretion of a policeman whether a person in custody should be brought to jail or before a magistrate. Another question was on detention. How long could a pre-trial detainee be held? Were there certain textbooks prepared by the National Commission of Human Rights fortraining?

SAYED KASSEM EL MASRY, co-rapporteur for the report, said that in spite of being a small developing country, Mauritius had laudably met its international obligations on time. certainly, the adoption of the Protection of Human Rights Act was a positive development. In article 11, the main observation was not what was required by the article. It described measures for preventing acts of torture in the State's administrative system. Article 11 required the State to list the measures it took to meet the rules to prevent torture. Paragraph 41 of the report referred to the case of a statement from an accused person that was obtained through the use of force. It said the inquiry would be carried out by a unit of the police force. That approach should be reviewed and changed; a more objective body should carry out the inquiry. The most important things were promptness and impartiality in such inquiries.

Paragraph 45, Mr. El Masry said, noted that the number of alleged cases of assault by police officers was 34 in a certain period, but the number of cases where there were convictions was zero, as were the number of cases where disciplinary action was taken. This needed elaboration or justification.

He said that on implementation of Convention article 16, the report had one sentence referring the reader to other articles. But article 16 addressed other acts of cruel and inhuman treatment or punishment that were not torture. The report did not deal with that aspect. And paragraph 9 of the report said that severe mental anguish that was intentionally applied was not an offence under the law.

Other Committees expert raised further questions. About article 10, which described the education of police and prison personnel, why was there no reference to the education of medical personnel? What was the policy for compensating victims of torture in Mauritius? Paragraph 49 referred to the appointment of an ombudsman, but how was the person appointed? That would tell a lot about the ombudsman's independence. Although statements obtained by force were not admissible, what about derivative evidence learned about in the same manner? How many private prosecutions had been carried out in the last two years?