COMMITTEE AGAINST TORTURE CONSIDERS FOLLOW-UP TO COMMUNICATIONS AND CONCLUDING OBSERVATIONS

The Committee against Torture this afternoon considered the issue of follow-up to individual communications and to concluding observations, hearing oral presentations by Committee Members on each topic.

Presenting the report on follow-up to individual communications, Committee Expert Fernando Mariño Menendez said the report noted that some countries had not replied yet to requests for information, and details on which countries were concerned were contained in the report. In particular, reference was made to six cases, involving five countries, in which the Committee had requested that measures be taken. Those cases involved individual complaints lodged against Canada, France, Serbia and Montenegro, Senegal and Sweden.

Mr. Marino concluded by saying that there was not much more that could be done in cases where States parties did not reply, except to send reminder letters. The Chairperson then added that there was also always the possibility of asking for an interview with a representative of the State party.

On follow-up to conclusions and reservations, Committee Member Felice Gaer recalled that at the May 2005 session (34th session) the Committee had begun the process of designating a set of conclusions for follow-up purposes, of a serious nature, which could be accomplished in a one-year period, and were of a protective nature, and the Committee then asked the State party to provide a response within a year. Since then, the Committee had asked 25 State parties to provide follow-up information on concluding observations.

To date, the Committee had received replies from 17 States parties, and that was a good sign that the process was working. Indeed, one reply had been received this very morning. As of this session replies from eight State parties thus remained outstanding, but at the end of this session a further seven follow up replies would fall due, Ms. Gaer recalled.

When the Committee next reconvenes in public to formally close its thirty-seventh session, at 10 a.m. on Friday, 24 November, it is scheduled to discuss its programme of work for future sessions and to present its concluding observations on the reports of Tajikistan, Mexico, Burundi, Russian Federation, South Africa, Guyana and Hungary, which it considered during the present session.