COMMITTEE AGAINST TORTURE TAKES UP REPORT OF UNITED KINGDOM
Press Release
HR/4231
COMMITTEE AGAINST TORTURE TAKES UP REPORT OF UNITED KINGDOM
19951120 GENEVA, 17 November (UN Information Service) -- The United Kingdom remained fully committed to seeking a widely acceptable and comprehensive political settlement in Northern Ireland, the Committee against Torture was told this morning when it took up the second periodic report of the United Kingdom. The Committee was examining how that State party was giving effect to the provisions of the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment.Questions posed by the Committee members including those concerning the use of incommunicado interrogation systems by the army and the police in Northern Ireland, deportation of foreigners, ill-treatment of people of colour and transfer of public power to private security companies.
The head of the delegation, Bob Morris, Assistant Under-Secretary, Criminal Justice and Constitutional Department of the Home Office, was accompanied by Henry Steel of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office; Harry Carter, Senior Principal Legal Advisor, Home Office; Peter Withers, Director of Custody, Scottish Prison Service; Steven Bramley, Assistant Secretary, on secondment from the Home Office; and Fiona Spencer, Head of Human Rights Section, Home Office. Also comprising the delegation were Stephen Wong, Principal Crown Counsel, Hong Kong; Peter Wong, Senior Crown Counsel; Jack Chan, Security Branch; John Dean, Home Affairs Branch; and Sarah Foulds and Emer Doherty, both of the Permanent Mission at Geneva.
Introduction of Report
Mr. Morris, introducing the second periodic report, noted that his country remained fully committed to seeking, through a process of political dialogue, a widely acceptable and comprehensive political settlement in Northern Ireland. Since the cease-fire declared by the Provisional Irish Republican Army on 31 August 1994, and by the "Loyalist" terrorist organizations on 13 October 1994, there had been one confirmed terrorist killing. However, the terrorist organizations remained organized, armed and capable of a return to violence.
Furthermore, the continued cessation of violence in Northern Ireland had enabled the Government to respond in a number of positive ways, such as lifting most exclusion orders and withdrawing troops. The emergency powers were also used less often by the army and the police. With regard to prison
conditions, the Government had undertaken appropriate measures to eliminate overcrowding and to provide decent conditions to prisoners.
Mr. Steel, speaking about the overseas territories, said that the observance of the Convention was reassured, as had been reported in the initial report. The respective situations reported in those territories had, for the most part, not materially changed, given the nature of the obligations imposed by the Convention. In those circumstances, it was not surprising that most of the territories had found little or nothing significant to add to previous reports.
Mr. Wong, speaking mainly on the situation of Hong Kong, said that the government of Hong Kong had taken the requisite steps to ensure that the provisions of the various human rights agreements that applied to that territory were adequately implemented by domestic law. The government was considering strengthening the monitoring role of the Independent Police Complaints Council, particularly by appointing private citizens to observe the investigation of complaints.
Questions by Committee Members
Peter Thomas Burns, expert from Canada, expressed disappointment that despite the cease-fire in Ulster, all the emergency powers of the police and army remained in effect. That situation provided the conditions necessary for abuse of power and the evidence had indicated that such abuses continued to occur. The system of interrogations might sometimes breach article 1 and at other times article 16 of the Convention. In that connection, complaints relating mainly to slapping on the head above the hairline and abusive language were reported.
Incommunicado interrogation of suspected terrorists would inevitably breach the Convention because access to counselling was restricted, he said. Had the police in Ulster been investigated for complaints directed against it? Was there any move to educate serving police and prison officers so that they understood how human rights values functioned in the legal and social systems?
With regard to the use of plastic bullets, the expert said that it was still adopted in non-riot circumstances. Such bullets had inflicted serious injuries against peaceful demonstrators. What were the rules on the use of those bullets? The United Kingdom had been severely criticised in public as a result of some involuntary deportations in asylum-seeking cases. It was requested to respect its obligation of article 3 of the Convention which stipulated that no state Party should expel to another State where there were substantial grounds for believing that the person would be in danger of being subjected to torture.
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The cases of a Zairian and an Algerian who had been expelled and who were later killed in their respective countries were mentioned during the debate. The United Kingdom was asked about the guarantees it envisaged in the application of the Convention after July 1997 when Hong Kong was handed over to China.
Fawzi El Ibashi, expert from Egypt, asked about ill-treatment of people of colour in the United Kingdom, adding that they were stopped by police 10 times more often than their white counterparts. Black people remained in custody longer than others. Why did complaints by people of colour of police mistreatment generally end in impunity?
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