Convention
Abbreviation:
CAT
COMMITTEE AGAINST TORTURE
24th Session
1-19 May 2000
CONSIDERATION OF REPORTS SUBMITTED BY STATES PARTIES UNDER ARTICLE
19 OF THE CONVENTION
Conclusions
and recommendations of the Committee against Torture
Paraguay
146. The Committee considered the third periodic report of Paraguay
(CAT/C/49/Add.1) at its 418th, 421st and 425th meetings, held on 5,
8 and 10 May 2000 (CAT/C/SR.418, 421 and 425) and adopted the following
conclusions and recommendations.
1. Introduction
147. The third periodic report of Paraguay, submitted within the time-limit
provided for in article 19 of the Convention, was not in conformity
with the general guidelines regarding form and contents adopted by
the Committee at its twentieth session.
148. During the introduction of the report and in response to the
comments and views of the members of the Committee, the representatives
of Paraguay provided comprehensive information which partially made
up for the report's shortcomings.
2. Positive aspects
149. The Committee notes with satisfaction:
(a) The entry into force of the new Penal Code and the gradual application
of the changes introduced by the new Code of Criminal Procedure, whose
enforcement should enable the State party better to fulfil its obligations
under the Convention;
(b) The innovations introduced by the new Penal Code, including the
extension of its application to the punishment of acts committed abroad
against rights which are universally protected under an international
treaty, a provision which is in keeping with article 5 of the Convention;
(c) The exclusion of the probative value of any statement which is
contrary to procedural guarantees provided for in the Constitution
and in international law, as required by the new Code of Criminal
Procedure, thus giving national courts binding jurisdiction, in accordance
with article 15 of the Convention;
(d) The imposition of appropriate sentences for human rights violations
committed during the dictatorship overthrown in 1989;
(e) Programmes for the training of judges, prosecutors and police
officers under the new criminal law system;
(f) The announcement by the representatives of Paraguay that a ratification
bill will soon be submitted recognizing the competence referred to
in articles 21 and 22 of the Convention.
3. Principal subjects of concern
150. The Committee is concerned at:
(a) The failure to establish the Office of the Ombudsman eight years
after the entry into force of the 1992 Constitution, which provided
for it, and more than four years after the promulgation of the Organization
Act;
(b) The fact that in the legislation in force, torture is not defined
as an offence in accordance with article 1 of the Convention; the
offence provided for in the new Penal Code does not include basic
elements of the offence described in the Convention;
(c) The information the Committee received from reliable sources that
the practice of torture and cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment
or punishment continues in police stations and in Armed Forces prisons
and premises, where soldiers performing compulsory military service
are subjected to frequent physical ill-treatment;
(d) The lack of programmes for redress and the rehabilitation of the
physical and mental health of the victims of torture, as required
by article 14 of the Convention. The Committee also did not receive
information on any case in which a victim of torture obtained the
right to redress.
4. Recommendations
151. The Committee recommends:
(a) The prompt appointment of the Ombudsman and the provision of sufficient
resources to enable his Office to establish its presence throughout
the national territory;
(b) The inclusion in the Penal Code of provisions defining torture
as a crime in accordance with article 1 of the Convention;
(c) The legal recognition of the right of victims of torture to redress
and fair and adequate compensation at the expense of the State.
