On Thursday, 11 November, the Saeima adopted in the second and final reading the draft law ratifying the Optional Protocol to the United Nations (UN) Convention against Torture and other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment.

“With the ratification of the Protocol, Latvia has joined a community of 90 countries that acknowledge the need to improve the protection of rights as set out in the Convention, eradicate the abuse of state authority, and improve the conditions in facilities confining persons who are or may be deprived of their liberty,” said Rihards Kols, Chair of the Foreign Affairs Committee, which is responsible for the progress of the draft law in the Saeima.

The Protocol provides for establishing mechanisms to prevent torture and other cruel, inhuman, or degrading treatment or punishment, and a system for regular missions and visits to facilities confining people who are deprived of liberty.

The Protocol sets out a dual—international and national—system for monitoring places of detention. According to the Protocol, the international monitoring system is implemented by the Subcommittee on Prevention of Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment of the Committee against Torture, comprising experts from UN Member States. The function of the national monitoring mechanism is to be delegated to the Ombudsperson. “The application of a dual monitoring system for places of detention strengthens the general mechanisms of human rights protection systems,” Kols had emphasised previously.

According to the summary of the draft law, by ratifying the Protocol, a country allows the experts to enter any type of detention facility located under the country’s jurisdiction without prior notice, including temporary detention facilities, detention facilities for minors, asylum seeker centres, psychiatric and social care facilities, and other places, including private facilities.

The Protocol has already been ratified by 90 countries, including the majority of countries in the European region.

Saeima Press Service