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Council of Europe anti-torture Committee (CPT) visits Armenia
The main objective of the visit was to review the measures taken by the Armenian authorities in response to the recommendations made by the Committee after previous visits. To this end, the delegation examined the treatment and safeguards afforded to persons deprived of their liberty by the...
Council of Europe anti-torture Committee (CPT) publishes report on its 2022 ad hoc visit to the Republic of Moldova
The main objective of the visit was to re-examine the treatment and conditions of detention of persons held in prison. To this end, the CPT visited Prison no. 4 in Cricova, Prison no. 13 in Chișinău and Prison no. 18 in Brănești. Particular attention was paid to assessing the progress achieved by...
Council of Europe anti-torture Committee monitors treatment of foreign nationals during Frontex-supported return flight from Germany to Pakistan
The main objective of the visit was to examine the treatment of foreign nationals deprived of their liberty under immigration legislation as well as the procedures and safeguards applied to them in the context of their removal. More specifically, the delegation observed the preparation and...
Council of Europe anti-torture Committee (CPT) publishes report on its visit to Luxembourg
During the visit, the CPT examined the treatment of persons deprived of their liberty by the police and of persons detained in the two closed prisons. The Committee also examined the situation of patients subject to a placement measure in several closed psychiatric units in two hospitals....
Council of Europe anti-torture Committee (CPT) publishes report on the 2022 ad hoc visit to Greece
The main objective of the visit was to examine the treatment and living conditions of persons held in the Korydallos Psychiatric Hospital for prisoners (the Hospital). The CPT found that to all intents and purposes the Hospital remains a prison both in its design and functioning. Further, the...
Council of Europe anti-torture Committee (CPT) publishes two reports on the monitoring of a Frontex-supported return operation from Belgium and Cyprus to the Democratic Republic of Congo
The two reports examine the treatment and conditions of detention of foreign nationals deprived of their liberty under immigration legislation and the safeguards afforded to them in the context of their removal. The CPT sent, for the first time, two delegations to observe the preparations and...
Council of Europe anti-torture Committee (CPT) publishes report on its 2022 visit to Latvia
As regards police custody, the majority of persons interviewed by the CPT delegation stated that they had been treated correctly by the police. However, the delegation did receive several allegations from detained persons, of physical ill-treatment by police officers. Most of these allegations...
The CPT held its 111th plenary meeting in July 2023
At this session, the Committee adopted the reports on its periodic visit to Luxembourg (March/April 2023) and its ad hoc visits to Azerbaijan (December 2022), Bulgaria (March 2023), Georgia (March 2023), Moldova (December 2022), Serbia (March 2023) and the United Kingdom (March/April 2023). These...
Council of Europe anti-torture Committee (CPT) publishes report on its 2022 ad hoc visit to the United Kingdom
The focus of the visit was to examine the treatment of foreign nationals arriving by small boat in the UK after crossing the English Channel. The CPT visited the Western Jet Foil disembarkation site and the Manston Short-Term Holding Facility (STHF), where migrants are processed and held for the...
Council of Europe anti-torture Committee (CPT) publishes report on its 2021 visit to Austria
In respect of persons held in police custody, the vast majority of detainees interviewed by the delegation made no allegations of ill-treatment. However, the report reiterates the Committee’s doubts as to whether investigations into allegations of police ill-treatment can be seen to be fully...
Council of Europe anti-torture Committee (CPT) publishes report on its 2022 periodic visit to the Netherlands
During the visit, the delegation assessed the treatment and safeguards afforded to persons deprived of their liberty by the police and it examined the treatment and conditions of detention of persons in prison, including those held in high-security units. Several immigration detention facilities...
Council of Europe anti-torture Committee (CPT) publishes report on its 2022 ad hoc visit to Montenegro
The report highlights that a considerable number of allegations of serious physical ill-treatment of detained persons by police officers were received by the CPT’s delegation. These included allegations against officers from the Sector for the Fight against Organised Crime and Corruption, Special...
Council of Europe anti-torture Committee (CPT) visits Estonia
The main objective of the visit was to review the measures taken by the Estonian authorities in response to the recommendations made by the Committee after previous visits. In this connection, particular attention was paid to the treatment and conditions of detention of persons in police custody...
Council of Europe anti-torture Committee (CPT) visits Hungary
In the course of the visit, the delegation examined the treatment and safeguards afforded to persons deprived of their liberty by the police and the treatment of persons in prison and their conditions of detention. Further, it assessed the situation of persons placed in the Judicial Observation...
Council of Europe anti-torture Committee visits Cyprus
The main objective of the visit was to review the progress in the implementation of the Committee’s recommendations since its previous visit in 2017 in relation to Nicosia Central Prisons, notably in respect of overcrowding, inter-prisoner violence, staffing levels, material conditions and health...
Council of Europe anti-torture Committee (CPT) carries out a visit to Albania
The main objective of the visit was to review the progress made as regards implementation of the recommendations made by the Committee after previous visits. Particular attention was paid to the treatment and conditions of detention of persons in police custody and of inmates in several prison...
Council of Europe anti-torture Committee (CPT) publishes report on its 2021 ad hoc visit to Bosnia and Herzegovina
During the visit, the CPT delegation examined the treatment of persons deprived of their liberty by various police agencies, in particular in the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina (FBiH), and the effectiveness of investigations into allegations of ill-treatment by the police. The delegation...
Council of Europe anti-torture Committee (CPT) carries out a visit to the United Kingdom
The main objective of the visit was to examine the treatment and conditions of detention of persons held under immigration legislation, both in immigration removal centres and prison establishments. The visit also afforded the delegation the possibility to examine the effectiveness of the...
Council of Europe anti-torture Committee (CPT) carries out a visit to Luxembourg
The main objective of the visit was to examine the measures taken by the Luxembourg authorities, in light of the recommendations made by the Committee after its previous visits in 2009 and 2015. To this end, the delegation visited two police stations and two prison establishments, to assess the...
Council of Europe anti-torture Committee (CPT) carries out a visit to Bulgaria
The focus of this ad hoc visit was to review the implementation of the long-standing CPT recommendations as regards the situation of persons deprived of their liberty in psychiatric institutions and social care homes. The situation found by the CPT in such establishments in Bulgaria during the...
Council of Europe anti-torture Committee (CPT) carries out a visit to Serbia
The main objective of the visit was to examine the treatment of persons deprived of their liberty by the police. The CPT considered that the action taken to prevent ill-treatment by the police in light of the recommendations contained in the reports on the 2017 and 2021 visits was not sufficient....
The Council of Europe anti-torture Committee (CPT) calls for an end to illegal pushback practices and for increased safeguards against ill-treatment
As a result of its observations made during various monitoring visits, the CPT warns of the increasing number of cases of ill-treatment of foreign nationals deprived of their liberty under immigration legislation. “Foreign nationals detained under immigration legislation are often held – and...
The Council of Europe anti-torture Committee announces periodic visits to eight countries in 2024
The Committee intends to examine the treatment of persons deprived of their liberty in the following countries: Bosnia and Herzegovina Czech Republic Denmark France Georgia Ireland Norway Slovenia Persons and organisations in possession of relevant information concerning the situation of persons...
Council of Europe anti-torture Committee (CPT) carries out a visit to Georgia
The focus of the visit of the CPT’s delegation was on the secure wards of VivaMedi Clinic in Tbilisi, where prisoners receiving inpatient treatment are accommodated. During the visit, the delegation held consultations with Rati Bregadze, Minister of Justice, Beka Dzamashvili, Deputy Minister of...
Council of Europe anti-torture Committee (CPT) publishes report on its 2022 periodic visit to Italy
During the visit, the CPT's delegation examined the treatment and conditions of detention of persons held in four prison establishments. It also assessed the treatment of patients in the psychiatric wards of four civil hospitals (Servizi psichiatrici di diagnosi e cura or SPDCs) and, for the...
The CPT held its 110th plenary meeting in March 2023
During the session, the Committee adopted the reports on its periodic visits to Croatia (September 2022), Portugal (May 2022) and San Marino (September 2022) and on its ad hoc visits to Greece (November 2022), Romania (September 2022) and Türkiye (September 2022). The CPT also adopted the reports...
The Council of Europe anti-torture Committee (CPT) holds high-level talks in Lithuania
The main objective of the talks was to discuss the action taken by the government to address the long-standing recommendations to improve the situation in prisons as set out in the CPT’s report on the December 2021 visit to the country, which was published on 23 February 2023, together with the...
The Council of Europe anti-torture Committee (CPT) holds high-level talks in Poland
The aim of the talks was to relaunch the dialogue between the CPT and the Polish authorities in a spirit of cooperation, in particular as regards the implementation of the Committee’s long-standing recommendations concerning the treatment of persons deprived of their liberty. The atmosphere of...
Council of Europe anti-torture Committee (CPT) publishes report on its 2021 visit to Lithuania
During the visit, the delegation examined the treatment and conditions of detention of persons held in police and prison establishments as well as the situation of persons in foreigners’ registration centres. The delegation also reviewed the use of means of restraints and legal safeguards offered...
Council of Europe anti-torture Committee (CPT) carries out a visit to Azerbaijan
The main objective of the visit was to examine, in light of the recommendations made by the Committee after its previous visit in 2020, the treatment of persons deprived of their liberty by the police. To this end, the delegation visited several police establishments in Baku (namely the Temporary...
Council of Europe anti-torture Committee (CPT) carries out a visit to Moldova
The objective of the visit was to examine the treatment and conditions of detention of persons held in prison. Particular attention was paid to assessing the progress achieved by the authorities in the implementation of the Committee’s recommendations made following the previous visits. In the...
Council of Europe anti-torture Committee publishes the report on its visit to prisons in Belgium
The objective of the visit was to examine the situation in Belgian prisons in light of the recommendations made in the report on the periodic visit carried out in March/April 2017 and the public statement issued in July 2017. The delegation conducted follow-up visits to Antwerp, Lantin, and St....
Council of Europe anti-torture Committee visits the United Kingdom
The main objective of the visit was to examine the treatment of foreign nationals arriving by small boat in the United Kingdom after crossing the English Channel. The delegation visited Western Jet Foil and Manston Short-Term Holding Facility where all such persons are processed and held during...
Council of Europe anti-torture Committee monitors treatment of foreign nationals during return flight from Belgium and Cyprus to the Democratic Republic of the Congo
The main objective of the two ad hoc visits, to Belgium and Cyprus, was to examine the treatment and conditions of detention of foreign nationals deprived of their liberty under aliens legislation as well as the procedures and safeguards applied to them in the context of their removal. More...
Council of Europe anti-torture Committee carries out visit to Greece
The main objective of the visit was to examine the treatment of persons held in the Korydallos Psychiatric Hospital for prisoners and to carry out targeted follow-up visits to certain areas of the Korydallos Prison Health Centre and the Korydallos Men’s Prison. The delegation also visited the...
The CPT held its October 2022 plenary meeting
During this meeting, the CPT adopted the reports on its periodic visits to Poland (March/April 2022), Latvia (May 2022) and Netherlands (May 2022), as well as on its ad hoc visit to Montenegro (June 2022). These reports will be sent in due course to the respective Governments.[1] The CPT also...
Council of Europe anti-torture Committee (CPT) publishes report on its 2021 visit to Bulgaria
During the visit, the delegation examined the treatment, conditions and legal safeguards offered to patients with psychiatric disorders and residents of social care institutions, as well as the treatment and conditions of detention of persons in police custody and penitentiary establishments. In...
The Council of Europe anti-torture Committee (CPT) visits Romania
The purpose of the ad hoc visit was to examine the treatment of patients held in psychiatric establishments and of residents accommodated in residential care homes. To this end, the CPT’s delegation visited four civil psychiatric hospitals where it focused on the treatment of the most acute...
The Council of Europe anti-torture Committee (CPT) visits Türkiye
The main objective of the visit was to examine the treatment and conditions of detention of foreign nationals detained under aliens legislation as well as the procedures applied to them in the context of their removal. On the occasion of the visit, the delegation also went to Imralı F-type...
The Council of Europe anti-torture Committee (CPT) visits Croatia
The CPT’s delegation reviewed the progress made by the Croatian authorities in respect of its previous recommendations made after its 2017 periodic visit. Particular attention was paid to the treatment and the conditions of detention afforded to male and female prisoners held in four prison...
Council of Europe Anti-torture Committee (CPT) visits San Marino
The purpose of the visit was to assess, in light of the recommendations made during the Committee's previous visit in 2013, the situation of persons in the custody of law enforcement agencies, inmates in San Marino Prison, persons undergoing "compulsory health treatment" (involuntary psychiatric...
Council of Europe anti-torture Committee publishes report on its 2020 visit to Germany
In the course of the visit, the delegation examined the treatment and conditions of detention of persons held in several police establishments and prisons, as well as the treatment, living conditions and legal safeguards offered to forensic psychiatric patients in two Länder. In this connection,...
Council of Europe Anti-Torture Committee holds High Level Talks in Greece on prison reform
The main objective was to talk about the action being taken by the Greek Government to address the serious concerns of the Committee regarding the fundamental shortcomings in the treatment and conditions of detention of persons held in prisons. In this context, the delegation was keen to learn...
Council of Europe anti-torture Committee publishes report on prisons in Greece
The main objective of the visit was to examine the treatment of prisoners and to review the progress made by the authorities in implementing the Committee’s recommendations made over the past 10 years regarding overcrowding and poor conditions of detention, inter-prisoner violence, severe...
Council of Europe anti-torture Committee announces periodic visits to eight countries in 2023
The Committee intends to examine the treatment of persons deprived of their liberty in the following countries: Albania Armenia Cyprus Hungary Luxembourg Malta North Macedonia Slovak Republic Persons and organisations in possession of relevant information concerning the situation of persons...
Council of Europe anti-torture Committee publishes the response of the Albanian authorities to the report on the 2021 visit
The main objective of the visit was to examine the situation of male and female forensic psychiatric patients in the country. In the visit report, the CPT acknowledged the measures taken by the Albanian authorities to temporarily transfer all male forensic psychiatric patients from Zaharia...
The CPT held its July 2022 plenary meeting
The European Committee for the Prevention of Torture and Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (CPT) held its 108th plenary meeting in Strasbourg from 4 to 8 July 2022. For the first time since March 2020, virtually all members attended the meeting physically. During this meeting, the CPT...
Council of Europe anti-torture Committee publishes report on its 2021 visit to the United Kingdom
In the report, the CPT again highlights the cumulative deleterious effects on the lives of prisoners of chronic overcrowding, poor living conditions and the lack of purposeful regimes. Since 2016, these long-standing problems have been exacerbated by a significant escalation in levels of...
CPT President meets with Councillor for Justice of Catalonia (Spain)
On 20 June 2022, at the Council of Europe's Paris Office, Alan Mitchell, President of the CPT, met Lourdes Ciuró i Buldó, Councillor for Justice (Consellera de Justícia) of the autonomous regional government of Catalonia (Generalitat de Cataluña), assisted by Sergi Blàzquez, Secretary for Penal...
Council of Europe anti-torture Committee publishes its report on the ad hoc visit to Georgia
The objective of the visit was to review the implementation of the CPT’s recommendations made in the report on its 2018 periodic visit concerning steps required to combat the phenomena of inter-prisoner violence, intimidation and extortion and the influence of informal prisoner hierarchy in...
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