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15 August 2000




The Special Rapporteur of the United Nations Commission on Human Rights on the question of torture, Sir Nigel Rodley, is undertaking a fact-finding mission to Brazil from 20 August to 12 September 2000 at the invitation of the Government.

The Special Rapporteur has requested to meet with, among other Brazilian officials, the President of the Federal Republic of Brazil, the Minister of External Relations, the Minister of Justice and State Secretary for Human Rights, the President of the Supreme Court, the Attorney-General and the Procurator for the Rights of the Citizen, the Secretary for Institutional Defence in the President=s Office and the Chairman of the Human Rights Commission of the Chamber of Deputies. At the State level, the Special Rapporteur has requested to meet, among others, the State Governor, the Secretary of State for Public Security, the Secretary of State for Justice, the Police Ombudsman (Ouvidor) and the Head of the Military Police and Civil Police (Corregedor da Policia Civil/Militar), as well as the President of the State Appeals Courts and the State Public Prosecutor. He will also meet with various non-governmental organizations and with private individuals.

The Special Rapporteur is scheduled to visit Brasilia, Sao Paulo, Rio de Janeiro, Belo Horizonte, Recife, Belem and Maraba where he will meet local police officials and visit police lock-ups and other places of detention.

Sir Nigel was first appointed Special Rapporteur in 1993; his mandate was extended by resolution 1998/38 of the Commission on Human Rights in 1998 for a further three years. He has previously carried out fact-finding missions to the Russian Federation, Rwanda, Colombia, Pakistan, Chile, Portugal with respect to the territory of East Timor, Venezuela, Mexico, Turkey, Romania, Cameroon, Kenya and Azerbaijan. Sir Nigel is a Professor of Law at the University of Essex in Colchester, England.


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