禁止酷刑委员会将于2016年11月7日至12月7日在日内瓦举行第五十九届会议（部分翻译）

背景信息

委员会将审议厄瓜多尔、芬兰、摩纳哥、斯里兰卡、纳米比亚、土库曼斯坦、亚美尼亚和佛得角的状况

日内瓦（2016年11月3日）——禁止酷刑委员会将于11月7日至12月7日在日内瓦威尔逊宫举行会议，审议厄瓜多尔、芬兰、摩纳哥、斯里兰卡、纳米比亚、土库曼斯坦、亚美尼亚和佛得角为预防和惩罚酷刑行为而采取的措施。这些国家的代表将来到委员会面前，讨论国家为落实《禁止酷刑和其他残忍、不人道或有辱人格的待遇或处罚公约》所载权利而付出的努力。

审议七国的国别报告以及一个国家状况（在无报告的情况下审议佛得角）将进行网播，并分别于如下日期举行：11月8日和9日（厄瓜多尔），11月9日和10日（芬兰），11月11日和14日（摩纳哥），11月15日和16日（斯里兰卡），11月18日和21日（纳米比亚），11月21日和22日（土库曼斯坦），11月23日和24日（亚美尼亚）以及11月24日和25日（佛得角）。载有报告链接、国家状况和相关文件的详细日程可以在下方找到。

届会期间，委员会还将与联合国防范酷刑小组委员会举行联合会议。它将与欧洲人权法院和国际刑事警察组织举行闭门会议。国际酷刑受害者康复理事会还将组织关于收集和使用来自酷刑受害者的信息的专题简报。委员会将举行闭门会议讨论《公约》第三条的一般性意见修订草案，主要关于不驱回任何人在大量根据证明其可能面临酷刑危险的情况下前往其他国家。委员会还将讨论《公约》第十九条之下的结论性意见的后续工作以及第二十二条之下的个人投诉问题，以及报复与委员会合作者的问题。

委员会将与届会期间接受审议国家的非政府组织、国家人权机构和国家防范机制举行闭门会议。委员会还将举行闭门会议审议来文，包括指称酷刑在某些缔约国内被系统性实施的信息，还会审议声称是《公约》缔约国违反条约行为受害者的个人投诉。会议最后一天，为会员将通过未来届会的工作方案。

委员会与各国代表团的对话将于上午10点至下午1点以及下午3点至6点在威尔逊宫一层会议室举行。以上会议的网络直播可在此查看： http://www.treatybodywebcast.org/.

委员会将在届会上审议的报告、国家状况和其他文件可通过会议网页查看。委员会关于国别审评的调查结果，官方称为结论性意见，将于2016年12月7日在上述 网页公布。 委员会将在届会上审议的报告、国家状况和其他文件可通过会议网页查看。委员会关于国别审评的调查结果，官方称为结论性意见，将于2016年12月7日在上述网页公布。

厄瓜多尔将提交第七次定期报告 CAT/C/ECU/Q/7。  委员会关于第四至第六次合并定期报告（2010年11月审议）的结论性意见和建议请见： CAT/C/ECU/CO/4-6。

芬兰将提交第七次定期报告 CAT/C/FIN/7。  委员会关于第五和第六次合并定期报告（2011年5月审议）的结论性意见和建议请见： CAT/C/FIN/CO/5-6。

摩纳哥将提交第六次定期报告 CAT/C/MCO/6。  委员会关于第四和第五次合并定期报告（2011年5月审议）的结论性意见和建议请见： CAT/C/MCO/CO/4-5。

斯里兰卡将提交第五次定期报告 CAT/C/LKA/5 和 Add.1。  委员会关于第三和第四次合并定期报告（2011年11月审议）的结论性意见和建议请见： CAT/C/LKA/CO/3-4。

纳米比亚将提交第二次定期报告 CAT/C/NAM/2。  委员会关于首份报告（1997年5月审议）的结论性意见和建议请见： A/52/44(SUPP) paras. 227-252。

土库曼斯坦将提交第二次定期报告 CAT/C/TKM/2。  委员会关于首份报告（2011年5月审议）的结论性意见和建议请见： CAT/C/TKM/CO/1。

亚美尼亚将提交第四次定期报告 CAT/C/ARM/4。  委员会关于第三次定期报告（2012年5月审议）的结论性意见和建议请见： CAT/C/ARM/CO/3。

佛得角尚未提交其首份报告，其早应于1993年7月3日提交。根据议事规则第67条，委员会将在缔约国无报告的情况下审议其落实《公约》的情况。缔约国已受邀在审议该国状况期间参与对话。

Background on the Convention and the Committee

The Convention, adopted unanimously by the General Assembly in 1984, entered into force on 26 June 1987.  States parties to the Convention are required to outlaw torture and no "exceptional circumstances" may be invoked as a justification for acts of torture nor can "higher orders" be an excuse for perpetrators.  The Convention introduced two significant new elements to the United Nations fight against torture: first, it specifies that alleged torturers shall be tried in a State party if not extradited to face trial in another State, therefore ensuring that there are no safe havens for perpetrators of acts of torture who shall not escape justice; secondly, under article 20, it provides for an inquiry, including a visit to the State party concerned, with its agreement, if the Committee receives reliable information, which appears to contain well-founded indications, that torture is being systematically practiced in the territory of that State party.

Under article 21, a State party to the Convention may at any time declare that it recognizes the competence of the Committee to receive and consider communications to the effect that a State party claims that another State party is not fulfilling its obligations under the Convention.

Under article 22, a State party to the Convention may at any time declare that it recognizes the competence of the Committee to receive and consider communications from, or on behalf of, individuals subject to its jurisdiction who claim to be victims of a violation by a State party of the provisions of the Convention.

The Convention has been ratified or acceded to by the following 160 States: Afghanistan, Albania, Algeria, Andorra, Antigua and Barbuda, Argentina, Armenia, Australia, Austria, Azerbaijan, Bahrain, Bangladesh, Belarus, Belgium, Belize, Benin, Bolivia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Botswana, Brazil, Bulgaria, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cambodia, Cameroon, Canada, Cape Verde, Central African Republic, Chad, Chile, China, Colombia, Congo, Costa Rica, Côte d'Ivoire, Croatia, Cuba, Cyprus, Czechia, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Denmark, Djibouti, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Egypt, El Salvador, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Estonia, Ethiopia, Fiji, Finland, France, Gabon, Georgia, Germany, Ghana, Greece, Guatemala, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Guyana, Holy See, Honduras, Hungary, Iceland, Indonesia, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Iraq, Japan, Jordan, Kazakhstan, Kenya, Kuwait, Kyrgyzstan, Lao People’s Democratic Republic, Latvia, Lebanon, Lesotho, Liberia, Libya, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Madagascar, Malawi, Maldives, Mali, Malta, Mauritania, Mauritius, Mexico, Republic of Moldova, Monaco, Mongolia, Montenegro, Morocco, Mozambique, Namibia, Nauru, Nepal, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Nicaragua, Niger, Nigeria, Norway, Pakistan, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, Philippines, Poland, Portugal, Qatar, Republic of Korea, Romania, Russian Federation, Rwanda, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, San Marino, Saudi Arabia, Senegal, Serbia, Seychelles, Sierra Leone, Slovakia, Slovenia, Somalia, South Africa, South Sudan, Spain, State of Palestine, Sri Lanka, Swaziland, Sweden, Switzerland, Syrian Arab Republic, Tajikistan, Thailand, the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Timor-Leste, Togo, Tunisia, Turkey, Turkmenistan, Uganda, Ukraine, United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom, United States, Uruguay, Uzbekistan, Vanuatu, Venezuela, Viet Nam, Yemen and Zambia.

The following 14 States parties have declared that they do not recognize the competence of the Committee provided for in article 20 of the Convention: Afghanistan, China, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Fiji, Israel, Kuwait, Lao People's Democratic Republic, Mauritania, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, the Syrian Arab Republic, the United Arab Emirates and Viet Nam.

The following 59 States have recognized the competence of the Committee under articles 21 and 22: Algeria, Andorra, Argentina, Australia, Austria, Belgium, Bolivia, Bulgaria, Cameroon, Canada, Chile, Costa Rica, Croatia, Cyprus, Czechia, Denmark, Ecuador, Finland, France, Georgia, Germany, Ghana, Greece, Guinea-Bissau, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Kazakhstan, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, Malta, Republic of Moldova, Monaco, Montenegro, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Paraguay, Peru, Poland, Portugal, Republic of Korea, Russian Federation, San Marino, Senegal, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, South Africa, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Togo, Tunisia, Turkey, Ukraine, Uruguay and Venezuela.

In addition, Japan, Uganda, the United Kingdom and the United States of America have recognized the competence of the Committee under article 21 only.  Azerbaijan, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Brazil, Burundi, Guatemala, Mexico, Morocco and Seychelles have recognized the competence of the Committee under article 22 only.

Optional Protocol to the Convention against Torture

The Optional Protocol to the Convention against Torture, which entered into force on 22 June 2006, established a system of regular visits by independent bodies to places where persons are or may be deprived of their liberty, in order to prevent torture and ill-treatment. The Optional Protocol’s innovative two-pillar approach relies on an international body, the Subcommittee on Prevention of Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (SPT), which is composed of 25 independent Experts, as well as national bodies for the prevention of torture (national preventive mechanisms – NPMs), which must be established or designated by each State party within one year after ratification/accession.

Eighty-three States had ratified or acceded to the Optional Protocol to the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment: Albania, Argentina, Armenia, Austria, Azerbaijan, Belize, Benin, Bolivia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Brazil, Bulgaria, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cabo Verde, Cambodia, Central African Republic, Chile, Costa Rica, Croatia, Cyprus, Czechia, Democratic Republic of Congo, Denmark, Ecuador, Estonia, Finland, France, Gabon, Georgia, Germany, Ghana, Greece, Guatemala, Honduras, Hungary, Italy, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Lebanon, Liberia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Maldives, Mali, Malta, Mauritania, Mauritius, Mexico, Mongolia, Montenegro, Morocco, Mozambique, Nauru, Netherlands, Niger, New Zealand, Nicaragua, Nigeria, Norway, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, Philippines, Poland, Portugal, Republic of Moldova, Romania, Rwanda, Senegal, Serbia, Slovenia, South Sudan, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Togo, Tunisia, Turkey, Ukraine, United Kingdom and Uruguay.

Other United Nations Activities against Torture
In addition to preventive measures, the United Nations has taken action to come to the aid of torture victims.  In 1981 the General Assembly set up the United Nations Voluntary Trust Fund for Victims of Torture as the international tool that makes the right to rehabilitation of thousands of victims worldwide a reality.  The Secretary-General and the High Commissioner for Human Rights repeatedly appeal to all Governments, organizations and individuals in a position to do so to contribute to the Fund in order to allow it to respond to the constantly increasing number of requests for assistance.  Contributing to the Fund is a concrete manifestation of the commitment towards the elimination of torture and the rehabilitation of victims, in line with article 14 of the Convention against Torture. 

In 2016 alone, with the critical support of the United Nations Voluntary Fund for Victims of Torture, over 47,000 victims in 81 countries are being assisted by specialised practitioners from rehabilitation centres, non-governmental organizations and legal aid groups, through a net investment in direct assistance services totalling over $ 7.1 million.

In accordance with article 26 of the Optional Protocol to the Convention against Torture, a Special Fund has been set up to help finance the implementation of the recommendations made by the Subcommittee on Prevention of Torture (SPT) after its visit to a State party, as well as education programmes for the National Preventive Mechanisms.  Since its establishment in 2011, the Fund has provided grants for 37 projects in 11 countries across four regions.  The projects supported by the Special Fund have had a real impact and have contributed to addressing real needs identified by the SPT in order to assist preventing torture and ill-treatment.  The Special Fund also acts as an encouragement to publish visit reports, which further assists more general oversight of the implementation of SPT recommendations.  In the coming year, the Special Fund will focus on projects supporting national preventive mechanisms, which play a vital role in preventing torture and ill-treatment through their visits to places of detention, identification of risks and recommendations concerning how to address those risks.

The United Nations Commission on Human Rights, in resolution 1985/33, decided to appoint an independent expert, a Special Rapporteur, to examine questions relevant to torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment. The mandate, which has subsequently been extended by the Human Rights Council, most recently in resolution 16/23, covers all countries, irrespective of whether a State has ratified the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment.  The mandate comprises three main activities: transmitting urgent appeals to States with regard to individuals reported to be at risk of torture, as well as communications on past alleged cases of torture; undertaking fact-finding country visits; and submitting annual reports on activities, the mandate and methods of work to the Human Rights Council and the General Assembly.

Membership and Officers of the Committee

The Committee's members are elected by the States parties to the Convention and serve in their personal capacity. The current members of the Committee are: Ms. Essadia Belmir (Morocco); Mr. Alessio Bruni (Italy); Ms. Felice Gaer (United States); Mr. Abdelwahab Hani (Tunisia); Mr. Claude Heller Rouassant (Mexico); Mr. Jens Modvig (Denmark); Ms. Sapana Pradhan-Malla (Nepal); Ms. Ana Racu (Moldova); Mr. Sébastien Touzé (France); and Mr. Kening Zhang (China).

Mr. Modvig is the Chairperson.  The Vice-Chairpersons are Ms. Belmir, Ms. Gaer and Mr. Heller Rouassant.  Mr. Touzé is the Rapporteur.

Proposed Programme of Work

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