Visit to Belgium by the European Committee for the Prevention of Torture

Strasbourg, 12.12.2001 - A delegation of the Council of Europe Committee for the Prevention of Torture and Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (CPT) recently carried out a visit to Belgium. The visit began on 25 November 2001 and was carried out within the framework of the CPT’s programme of periodic visits for the year 2001. It was the Committee's third periodic visit to Belgium.

The visit was carried out by the following members of the CPT:

-     Florin Stanescu (Head of the Delegation) (Romanian)
-     Ioanna Babassika (Greek)
-     Petros Michaelides (Cypriot)
-     Pierre Schmit (Luxemburger).

They were assisted by Odile Diamant-Berger, Lecturer in Forensic Medicine, former Head of the Emergency Forensic Medical Service at the Hôtel-Dieu Hospital, Paris, and Daniel Glezer, Psychiatrist, Head of the Regional Prison Psychiatric Service at the Regional Medical Psychological Service, "Les Baumettes" Remand Prison, Marseille, as well as by Fabrice Kellens and Edo Korljan of the CPT's Secretariat.

During this visit, the CPT’s delegation met Magda Aelvoet, Minister of Consumer Protection, Public Health and Environment, Antoine Duquesne, Minister of the Interior, Marc Verwilghen, Minister of Justice, as well as Nicole Marechal, Minister of Health and Youth Aid of the Belgian French Community. It also held talks with the Permanent Control Committee of the Police Forces, the Inspector General of the Federal and Local Police Forces, the General Delegate of the French Community for the Rights of the Child, as well as representatives from the Ministry of Defence.

The CPT’s delegation reviewed the measures taken by the Belgian authorities in response to the Committee’s recommendations made after its 1993 and 1997 visits (in particular as regards the safeguards offered to persons deprived of their liberty by the law enforcement agencies, material conditions of detention in law enforcement establishments, prison overcrowding, medical and psychiatric care in prisons and psychiatric annexes, and the situation in social defence establishments). The CPT’s delegation also examined in detail the procedures and means applied during the repatriation by air of foreign nationals, the implementation of the 1990 Law on the protection of the mentally ill and the situation in public establishments for youth protection.

The delegation visited the following places:

Law enforcement establishments

-     Jean Titeca Hospital, Brussels

Other establishments

-     Public Establishment for Youth Protection, Braine-le-Chateau

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In accordance with Article 11 of the European Convention for the Prevention of Torture and Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment, the information gathered by the CPT during its visit to Belgium and its consultations with the Belgian authorities are confidential.

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The CPT was set up under the 1987 European Convention for the Prevention of Torture and Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment. 41 of the 43 member States of the Council of Europe are bound by the Convention: Albania, Andorra, Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Georgia, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Moldova, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Russian Federation, San Marino, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, "the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia", Turkey, Ukraine and the United Kingdom. When they joined the Council of Europe in January 2001, Armenia and Azerbaijan undertook to ratify the Convention within one year.

The CPT is composed of persons from a variety of backgrounds: lawyers, medical doctors, police and prison experts, persons with parliamentary experience, etc. The Committee’s task is to examine the treatment of persons deprived of their liberty. For this purpose, it is entitled to visit any place where such persons are held by a public authority and to interview those persons in private. The Committee may formulate recommendations to strengthen, if necessary, their protection against torture and inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment.

The CPT organises periodic visits as well as other visits which appear to it to be required in the circumstances.

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Further information about the CPT may be obtained from: