UN torture prevention body to make first visit to Guatemala 11-20 May

GENEVA (7 May 2015) – The UN’s Subcommittee on Prevention of Torture (SPT) is due to visit Guatemala for the first time since the country ratified a key treaty in 2008 on the prevention of torture and ill-treatment of people deprived of their liberty.

The SPT, which monitors how States are implementing the Optional Protocol to the Convention against Torture (OPCAT), has a mandate to visit all States that are parties to OPCAT.

During the 10-day mission, the SPT delegation will visit places of deprivation of liberty, including prisons, pre-trial detention centres and police stations, and hold talks with the Guatemalan authorities. The SPT will also meet members of Guatemala’s National Preventive Mechanism (NPM), which is an independent body set up under OPCAT to monitor places of detention, and other stakeholders.

For the SPT, the key to preventing torture and ill-treatment lies in building constructive relations with the State concerned, and its guiding principles are co-operation and confidentiality. “We look forward to a constructive dialogue and a fruitful cooperation with Guatemalan authorities,” said Felipe Villavicencio, who is heading the four-member SPT delegation.

Following the visit, the SPT will submit a confidential report to the Government of Guatemala, containing its observations and recommendations on prevention of torture and ill-treatment of persons deprived of their liberty.

The SPT delegation is: Felipe Villavicencio Terreros, Roberto Michel Feher Pérez, Enrique Andrés Font, Emilio Ginés Santidrián.

ENDS

For media inquiries, please contact

In Guatemala: Estela Morales, +502 5632-2261 / emorales@ohchr.org

In Geneva: Liz Throssell, +41 (0) 22 917 9466/ ethrossell@ohchr.org, Helen Ronen +41 (0) 229179365 hronen@ohchr.org

Background:

The Optional Protocol on the Prevention of Torture has to date been ratified by 78 countries. The SPT communicates its recommendations and observations to the State by means of a confidential report, and if necessary to National Preventive Mechanisms. However, State parties are encouraged to request that the SPT makes these reports public.
More about the SPT: http://www.ohchr.org/EN/HRBodies/OPCAT/Pages/OPCATIndex.aspx