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The complaint regards the lack of information being supplied to the Committee regarding possible cases of torture in the country.
Apr 30, 2015 - 7:27 AM
The United Nations Committee against Torture has criticised Spain
The complaint regards the lack of information being supplied to the Committee regarding possible cases of torture in the country.
Apr 30, 2015 - 7:27 AM
The Committee has been asking repeatedly for details on concrete data on acts of torture, the investigations carried out on them, the people condemned or pardoned, and the amount of compensation paid to the victims, but has had no response from Spain.
The Committee against Torture is now considering the membership of Spain as they have been asking about 300 possible cases of torture reported from Spain over the last four years.
In the UN session yesterday calls were made on the Spanish delegation, led by the Spanish ambassador to the United Nations, Ana María Méndez Pérez, to bring concrete data on the crimes which are competence of the committee.
The current president of the committee, Claudio Grossman, said ‘The statistical data would help us to understand what the real situation is in Spain’. Members of the Spanish delegation tried to give some information by giving some names of victims and mentioning cases current under investigation, but there was failure to give any global data on the size of the problem. They added the Spanish Government has a draft reform in process which extends the sentence for torture from 10 to 15 years.
The president of the Committee showed her surprise and mentioned one particular case regarding Los Mossos d’Esquadra (The Catalan Regional Police) who were pardoned after being found guilty of torture. ‘Torture is the most serious of crimes and when they are committed by the security forces more so. We are concerned when a pardon is granted by the Government as it sidesteps the judicial process which should be controlled by the National Commission for Judicial Power’.
The Spanish delegation was also asked about the humanitarian conditions in the two immigrant reception centers in Ceuta and Melilla, and a member replied three cases had been investigated, despite hundreds are held in over-crowded conditions. Not impressed with the answer Claudio Grossman suggested security cameras should be installed in both centers and could not understand the lack of them.
The Spanish delegation responded to a question asked by the Committee member Alessio Bruni who asked about the 42 days of solitary confinement which Spain hold prisoners accused of terrorism. A legal expert in the Spanish delegation said the regulation allowed for three repeated punishments each one for 14 days, but this was always authorized by a judge and daily visits are made by a doctor.
An immigrant internment centre in Spain - Archive photo
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The Committee against Torture is now considering the membership of Spain as they have been asking about 300 possible cases of torture reported from Spain over the last four years.
In the UN session yesterday calls were made on the Spanish delegation, led by the Spanish ambassador to the United Nations, Ana María Méndez Pérez, to bring concrete data on the crimes which are competence of the committee.
The current president of the committee, Claudio Grossman, said ‘The statistical data would help us to understand what the real situation is in Spain’. Members of the Spanish delegation tried to give some information by giving some names of victims and mentioning cases current under investigation, but there was failure to give any global data on the size of the problem. They added the Spanish Government has a draft reform in process which extends the sentence for torture from 10 to 15 years.
The president of the Committee showed her surprise and mentioned one particular case regarding Los Mossos d’Esquadra (The Catalan Regional Police) who were pardoned after being found guilty of torture. ‘Torture is the most serious of crimes and when they are committed by the security forces more so. We are concerned when a pardon is granted by the Government as it sidesteps the judicial process which should be controlled by the National Commission for Judicial Power’.
The Spanish delegation was also asked about the humanitarian conditions in the two immigrant reception centers in Ceuta and Melilla, and a member replied three cases had been investigated, despite hundreds are held in over-crowded conditions. Not impressed with the answer Claudio Grossman suggested security cameras should be installed in both centers and could not understand the lack of them.
The Spanish delegation responded to a question asked by the Committee member Alessio Bruni who asked about the 42 days of solitary confinement which Spain hold prisoners accused of terrorism. A legal expert in the Spanish delegation said the regulation allowed for three repeated punishments each one for 14 days, but this was always authorized by a judge and daily visits are made by a doctor.
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