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Cameroon - Concluding Observations of the Committee against Torture - Consideration of Reports submitted by States Parties under Article 19 of the Convention [2010] UNCATCO 3; CAT/C/CMR/CO/4 (19 May 2010)

	United Nations	CAT/C/CMR/CO/4
	Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment		Distr.: General 19 May 2010 English Original: French

Committee against Torture

Forty-fourth session

Geneva, 26 April–14 May 2010

Consideration of reports submitted by States parties under article 19 of the Convention

Concluding observations of the Committee against Torture

Cameroon

1. The Committee against Torture considered the fourth periodic report of Cameroon (CAT/C/CMR/4) at its 930th and 944th meetings (CAT/C/SR.930 and 944) held on 28 April and 7 May 2010, and adopted, at its 950th and 951st meetings (CAT/C/SR.950 and 951), held on 12 May 2010, the concluding observations as set out below.

A. Introduction

2. The Committee welcomes the submission of the fourth periodic report of Cameroon, which was in compliance with the reporting guidelines, as well as the replies to the list of issues (CAT/C/CMR/Q/4 and Add.1). However, it regrets that the State party has not replied to the letter of 17 February 2006, in which the Rapporteur responsible for following up the Committee’s concluding observations regarding Cameroon (CAT/C/CR/31/6) requested additional information.

3. The Committee expresses its appreciation for the constructive dialogue held with the high-level delegation of the State party, and thanks it for the written replies to the questions raised by Committee members.

B. Positive aspects

4. The Committee notes with satisfaction that, under article 45 of the Constitution of 1972, as revised on 18 January 1996, international treaties and agreements ratified by the State party, including the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (“the Convention”), take precedence over domestic legislation.

5. The Committee notes with satisfaction the legislative and institutional advances made by the State party since the consideration of the third periodic report (CAT/C/34/Add.17), particularly:

(a) Decree No. 2004/320 of 8 December 2004 on the organization of the Government and the transfer of prison administration to the Ministry of Justice;

(b) Decree No. 2005/122 of 15 April 2005 on the organization of the Ministry of Justice and the creation of the Directorate for Human Rights and International Cooperation;

(c) Act No. 2005/006 of 27 July 2005 on the status of refugees;

(d) Act No. 2005/007 of 27 July 2005 on the Code of Criminal Procedure;

(e) Act No. 2005/015 of 29 December 2005 on combating smuggling and trafficking in children.

6. The Committee welcomes the ratification by the State party, on 18 May 2004, of the United Nations Convention against Transnational Organized Crime and two of its three protocols: the Protocol to Prevent, Suppress and Punish Trafficking in Persons, Especially Women and Children, and the Protocol against the Smuggling of Migrants by Land, Air and Sea.

7. The Committee notes with satisfaction the ratification, on 28 March 2009, of the Protocol to the African Charter on Human and People’s Rights on the Rights of Women in Africa.

8. The Committee welcomes the fact that the State party has agreed to host the United Nations Subregional Centre for Human Rights and Democracy in Central Africa and its unwavering support for the Centre’s activities.

9. The Committee notes with satisfaction the State party’s cooperation with the European Union in the context of the Programme to Improve Detention Conditions and Respect of Human Rights.

C. Main areas of concern and recommendations

Definition of torture and appropriate penalties

10. The Committee has noted that article 132 bis of the Criminal Code contains a definition of torture but regrets that, in spite of repeated requests, the State party has not provided it with a copy of the text. The Committee is therefore unable to assess whether or not the State party fully incorporated the definition of torture under articles 1 and 4 of the Convention. Moreover, the Committee notes with concern that domestic legislation does not provide for the imposition of sentences that take into account the seriousness of the offence (arts. 1 and 4).

The State party should provide the Committee with the necessary information for it to assess whether or not the State party has incorporated into its Criminal Code a definition of torture that complies with articles 1 and 4 of the Convention. The Committee emphasizes that the definition of torture should set out clearly the purpose of the offence, provide for aggravating circumstances, include the attempt to commit torture as well as acts intended to intimidate or coerce the victim or a third person, and refer to discrimination of any kind as a motive or reason for inflicting torture. The definition should also criminalize torture inflicted by or at the instigation of or with the consent or acquiescence of a public official or other person acting in an official capacity. The State party should also ensure that the provisions criminalizing acts of torture and making them punishable by criminal penalties are proportional to the seriousness of the acts committed.

Fundamental legal safeguards

11. The Committee takes note of the provisions in articles 37 and 116 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, under which persons who have been arrested are provided every reasonable facility to contact family members, obtain legal advice and consult a physician. Nevertheless, the Committee is concerned by information it has received indicating that, in practice, detainees, from the time of their arrest, rarely benefit from the guarantees provided for in the Code of Criminal Procedure. In addition, the Committee is deeply concerned by the fact that police custody, limited to 48 hours and renewable once with the authorization of the State prosecutor, is not observed in practice and that arrests are not registered immediately. It is especially concerned by credible allegations that law enforcement officials use extensions of police custody to extort money (arts. 2 and 11).

The State party should, without delay, implement measures to ensure that all basic guarantees are applied to all suspects from the moment of their arrest, in particular the rights to: access to a lawyer; to be examined by an independent physician; to contact a relative or friend; to be informed of one’s rights from the moment of detention, including the right to be informed of the charges; and to be brought promptly before a judge. Furthermore, the authorities should systematically and regularly update detention registers, which should contain the name of every detainee, the identity of arresting officials, the date of the detainee’s admission and release, and all other information required for such registers.

Accessible complaints mechanism and legal aid

12. The Committee is concerned by allegations that victims and especially women victims of torture or cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment have difficulty accessing justice. It is also concerned that legal assistance is available only to accused persons who face a life sentence or capital punishment (arts. 2 and 11).

The State party should take steps to facilitate access to justice for all victims of torture or cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment and make legal aid available to all those persons who need it, regardless of the sentences they face.

Habeas corpus

13. The Committee notes the provisions in the Code of Criminal Procedure on habeas corpus and compensation for improper pretrial detention. However, it is concerned that a writ of habeas corpus must be accompanied by an order of release from the State prosecutor. It is also concerned that a claims commission set up under article 237 of the Code of Criminal Procedure is still not working (art. 2).

The State party should revise its Code of Criminal Procedure to allow anyone with a writ of habeas corpus to be released immediately. The State party should also activate the claims commission without delay.

Pretrial detention

14. In spite of the State party’s explanations, the Committee remains deeply concerned by the high number of persons held in pretrial detention – 14,265 compared with 8,931 convicted prisoners in 2009. It is also concerned that the maximum period of pretrial detention provided for under article 221 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 12 months in the case of ordinary offences and 18 months for serious offences, is not observed (art. 2).

The State party should take urgent steps to reduce the period of pretrial detention, in particular by ensuring that the maximum detention periods provided for under pretrial detention legislation are observed and by applying the principle that pretrial detention should be viewed as an exceptional measure.

Prison conditions

15. While taking note of projects initiated by the State party, with support from the international community, and the State party’s commitment, made at the time of its universal periodic review (A/HRC/11/21/Add.1, recommendation 76 [14, 21 and 33]), to improve prison conditions, the Committee remains deeply perturbed by the deplorable living conditions in places of detention. The Committee has received reports of prison overcrowding; violence among prisoners; corruption (such as the renting of prison cells and sale of medical equipment); the lack of hygiene and adequate food; health risks and inadequate health care; the violation of the right to receive visits; and reports that some persons awaiting trial have been held in prison for a period longer than the sentence they face. It is also concerned by the use of civil imprisonment, in conformity with article 564 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, which means that persons, including minors, who have completed their sentences may be held in detention for a further period of from 20 days to 5 years, depending on how much money they owe. The Committee is also concerned by reports that there is no systematic separation of minors from adults, of persons in pretrial detention from convicts, or between men and women, and that female prisoners can be guarded by male staff (arts. 2, 11 and 16).

The State party should take urgent steps to bring conditions in all places of detention, including gendarmerie and police stations, into line with the Body of Principles for the Protection of All Persons under Any Form of Detention or Imprisonment (General Assembly resolution 43/173) and, in particular:

(a) Reduce prison overcrowding by favouring non-custodial penalties in its policy on crime, including probation, suspended sentences, community service, along with avenues of out-of-court dispute settlement, such as mediation. Similarly, it should increase judicial and non-judicial staff. As for children in conflict with the law, the State party should ensure that imprisonment is used only as a last resort;

(b) Improve the quality of food and health care provided to prisoners;

(c) Take appropriate measures to put an end, once and for all, to alleged corruption and ransom demands in prisons;

(d) Strengthen judicial supervision of prison conditions;

(e) Revise the provisions of the Code of Criminal Procedure on civil imprisonment and devise other means to allow detainees to pay off their debts;

(f) Reorganize prisons so that persons awaiting trial are detained separately from convicted prisoners, improve detention conditions for minors, ensuring that they are always detained separately from adults, and further develop alternative detention centres for minors away from prisons;

(g) Take measures to ensure that female prisoners are separated from male prisoners and guarded by female staff only;

(h) Provide a detailed report on the results achieved and/or difficulties encountered in the development of the programme to improve prison conditions by Cameroon and the European Development Fund between December 2006 and December 2010.

16. The Committee is deeply concerned about the high number of deaths in custody. Statistics provided by the State party show that 178 prisoners died between January and October 2008, and that in 38 of those cases no cause of death was specified. It is equally concerned by reports of excessive use of armed force by the security forces during escape attempts by prisoners (arts. 2, 11 and 16).

The State party should take urgent measures to prevent violence between and against prisoners, as well as deaths in custody. It should ensure that all cases of violence and death in custody are the subject of immediate, impartial, thorough and, where appropriate, forensic medical investigation, and that the persons responsible are brought to justice and convicted. It should be made easier for prisoners to lodge complaints.

17. While welcoming the State party’s study aimed at a review of Decree No. 92/52 of 27 March 1992, the Committee is concerned about the use in prisons of chains and solitary confinement as disciplinary measures, which may constitute cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment (arts. 11 and 16).

The Committee encourages the State party to repeal the decree on disciplinary measures in prison and to find methods consistent with the Convention for handling prisoners who pose a security risk.

Journalists and human rights defenders

18. The Committee is concerned about allegations that journalists and human rights defenders are the subject of harassment, arbitrary arrest, torture, cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment, and death threats, and that such acts go unpunished. Although taking note of the detailed information supplied by the State party and, in particular, of the administrative investigation into the death in custody, on 22 April 2010, of the journalist Mr. Germain Cyrille Ngota (also known as Bibi Ngota) the Committee is concerned about the high number of journalists and human rights defenders who have been imprisoned and about allegations of torture and cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment. It is also concerned about reports that the security forces put down demonstrations by journalists who were protesting over the circumstances of the death in custody of a journalist (arts. 2, 11, 12 and 16).

The State party should take effective measures to put an end to the harassment, arbitrary arrest, torture, cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment, and death threats to which journalists and human rights defenders are exposed, and to prevent further acts of violence. In addition, it should ensure that a thorough and effective inquiry is carried out quickly and that the perpetrators of such acts are duly punished. Moreover, the Committee joins the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) in its call for a thorough forensic medical investigation into the death of the journalist Mr. Ngota in Kondengui prison.

Events of February 2008

19. The Committee takes note of the investigations into the events of February 2008 and of the report drawn up in 2009, although it has not received a copy. It also notes the administrative inquiry made into allegations of human rights violations, especially the right to life, by security forces, which concluded that they had acted in self-defence. However, the Committee is concerned about credible reports from a variety of sources alleging that the security forces have carried out, against adults and children, extrajudicial killings, arbitrary detention, acts of torture and cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment, and violations of the right to a fair trial. It is also concerned about the lack of thorough individual, impartial and forensic medical investigations of alleged extrajudicial killings and acts of torture and cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment by the security forces (arts. 2, 11, 12 and 16).

The Committee recommends that a full, thorough and independent inquiry be opened into the events of February 2008. The State party should also publish the report on the inquiries it has carried out and submit a copy of it to the Committee for appraisal. At the same time, the State party should promptly begin thorough, impartial and forensic medical investigations into allegations of extrajudicial killings, acts of torture and cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment by the security forces and ensure that the perpetrators are brought to justice and sentenced appropriately.

Impunity

20. While welcoming the information transmitted by the State party on the prosecution of members of the security forces for violations of the Convention, the Committee remains seriously concerned about:

(a) Credible allegations that investigations and prosecutions relating to acts of torture and cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment are not carried out systematically and that perpetrators who are convicted receive light sentences that are not proportional to the seriousness of their crimes;

(b) The fact that prior authorization from the Ministry of Defence is required to prosecute gendarmes and military personnel for offences committed in military barracks or while on active duty;

(c) The lack of measures to protect complainants and witnesses against ill-treatment and intimidation after they lodge complaints or give evidence, which means that only a limited number of complaints are lodged for acts of torture or cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment;

(d) Article 30, paragraph 2, of the Code of Criminal Procedure, under which “the officer, judicial police officer or law enforcement officer who carries out the arrest requests that the person to be arrested accompany him or her and, if the person refuses, uses whatever force is necessary in proportion to the resistance met”;

(e) The lack of exhaustive statistics on the number of investigations and prosecutions of law enforcement officers for acts of torture or cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment (arts. 2, 12, 13 and 16).

The State party should demonstrate its firm commitment to eliminating the persistent problem of torture and impunity and:

(a) Publicly and unambiguously condemn the use of all forms of torture, addressing in particular law enforcement officers, the armed forces and prison staff, and including in its statements clear warnings that any person committing or participating in such acts or acting as an accomplice shall be held personally responsible before the law and shall be liable to criminal penalties;

(b) Take immediate steps to ensure that, in practice, all allegations of torture and ill-treatment are the subject of prompt, impartial and effective investigations and that those responsible — law enforcement officers and others — are prosecuted and punished without the need for prior authorization from their superiors or from the Ministry of Defence. Investigations should be conducted by a fully independent body;

(c) Ensure that, in cases of alleged torture, suspects are suspended from duty immediately for the duration of the investigation, particularly if there is a risk that they might otherwise be in a position to obstruct the investigation;

(d) Ensure that, in practice, complainants and witnesses are protected from any ill-treatment and acts of intimidation related to their complaint or testimony;

(e) Revise article 30, paragraph 2, of the Code of Criminal Procedure and ensure that any act of torture and cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment is met with prosecution and the appropriate convictions;

(f) Compile relevant and comprehensive statistics as soon as possible on complaints, inquiries, legal proceedings, convictions and sentences passed in cases of torture or cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment.

Constitutional Council

21. The Committee notes with satisfaction the establishment on 21 April 2004 of the Constitutional Council as the body regulating State institutions. However, it notes with concern that this institution has yet to start work, as its members have not been appointed. It also notes that doubts remain over whether members of the Constitutional Council may renew their terms of office (art. 2).

The State party should expedite the process of appointing members to the Constitutional Council and ensure that this institution begins its work as soon as possible. It should consider reviewing Acts Nos. 2004/004 and 2004/005 of 21 April 2004 concerning the organization and functioning of the Constitutional Council and establishing the status of its members in order to remove any doubts over the renewal of council members’ terms of office.

Body for monitoring law enforcement agencies or “Police des Polices”

22. While noting the establishment in 2005 of a Special Police Oversight Division, the so-called “Police des Polices”, attached to the Department for National Security, the Committee remains concerned about this institution’s lack of independence and objectivity. It is concerned that inquiries into allegations of unlawful acts, including torture or cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment, committed by the police, are carried out by police officials of the Special Police Oversight Division. In this regard, the Committee is concerned that only a few complaints against police officials are admitted, give rise to prompt, impartial and exhaustive investigations, and lead to prosecutions and convictions (arts. 2, 12, 13 and 16).

The State party should establish a body that is independent of the police and ensure that allegations of torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment are the subject of prompt, impartial, thorough and effective investigations.

Military justice

23. The Committee takes note of Act No. 2008/015 on the organization of military justice. However, it is concerned about the degree to which military justice applies to civilians, in cases of offences under legislation on combat weapons, defence, robbery with firearms and all related offences (art. 2).

The Committee recalls the conventional jurisdiction of military justice, which should be confined to crimes committed in the context of military service, and recommends that the State party review its legislation in order to exclude offences by civilians, including those that contravene legislation on military weapons and sidearms, armed robbery and all related offences, from the jurisdiction of military justice.

Terminating criminal prosecutions in the “social interest” or for “public order”

24. The Committee notes with concern that the current Code of Criminal Procedure contains a provision under which the Ministry of Justice may terminate criminal prosecutions in the “social interest” or for “public order”. While noting article 2 of Act No. 2006/022, which specifies the organization and functioning of administrative courts and contains provisions that penalize the abuse of authority, as well as the claim by the State party that this procedure has only been invoked once since it came into force in 2006, the Committee is concerned by the absence of appeals against the decision of the Ministry of Justice, as well as the lack of a definition of the terms in article 64 of the Code of Criminal Procedure (arts. 2, 12 and 13).

The State party should review the Code of Criminal Procedure in order to ensure that all criminal proceedings lead to the acquittal or conviction of the accused. Any decision by the Ministry of Justice to terminate criminal proceedings, even in the “social interest” or for “public order”, should be open to judicial appeal.

Acts regarding the state of emergency and the maintenance of law and order

25. The Committee notes with concern that Act No. 90/047 of 19 December 1990 on the state of emergency is in force. Given the guarantees in article 2, paragraph 2, of the Convention, the Committee notes with concern that the legislation on the state of emergency and Act No. 90/054 concerning the maintenance of law and order allow, under a state of emergency, for periods in police custody of two months, renewable once, and, in cases of banditry, for periods of police custody set at 15 days, also renewable (art. 2).

The State party should ensure that international principles governing states of emergency are respected, and in particular review the need for maintaining its state of emergency legislation in the light of the criteria laid down in article 4 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, to which Cameroon has been a party since 1984. The State party should also adhere strictly to the absolute prohibition of torture, in accordance with article 2, paragraph 2, of the Convention, which states that no exceptional circumstances whatsoever, whether a state of war or a threat of war, internal political instability or any other public emergency, may be invoked as a justification of torture.

Systematic monitoring of places of detention

26. The Committee notes the adoption of Act No. 2004/016, which established the National Commission on Human Rights and Freedoms in accordance with the Paris Principles (General Assembly resolution 48/134, annex) and that the Commission has been granted “B” status by the Subcommittee on Accreditation of the International Coordinating Committee of National Institutions for the Promotion and Protection of Human Rights (ICC). Nevertheless, the Committee is surprised that the Commission participated in the consideration of the report of Cameroon as part of the State party’s delegation rather than as an independent body. In addition, the Committee notes the low number of prison visits (according to information from the State party and the Commission, the latter visited only eight prisons between 2000 and 2010) and the lack of proper follow-up on the part of the authorities approached by the Commission. The Committee also notes that some NGOs have accreditation enabling them to visit prisons, but is concerned by reported difficulties in gaining access to prisons and the low number of prison visits carried out by NGOs (arts. 2, 11 and 13).

The State party should provide all the human and financial resources necessary to enable the National Commission on Human Rights and Freedoms to carry out its mandate, and should guarantee its independence. The Committee encourages the State party to abolish the voting rights of representatives of the Administration on the National Commission on Human Rights and Freedoms. The State party should take all appropriate steps to enable NGOs to carry out periodic, independent, unannounced and unrestricted visits to places of detention.

Training on the prohibition of torture

27. While acknowledging the State party’s significant efforts in providing human rights training to State officials, the Committee is concerned that the information, education and training provided to law enforcement officials, prison staff, army personnel, judges and prosecutors are inadequate and do not cover all the provisions of the Convention, in particular the non-derogable nature of the prohibition of torture and the prevention of cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment. The Committee also notes with concern that medical personnel working in detention facilities receive no specific and comprehensive training based on the Manual on the Effective Investigation and Documentation of Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (Istanbul Protocol) to detect signs of torture or cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment (arts. 10 and 15).

The State party should strengthen its training programmes for all law-enforcement and military personnel on the absolute prohibition of torture and cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment, as well as those for prosecutors and judges on the State party’s obligations under the Convention. The programmes should include the inadmissibility of confessions and statements obtained as a result of torture. The State party should also ensure that all medical personnel dealing with detainees receive adequate training on detecting signs of torture or cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment, in accordance with international standards as set out in the Manual on the Effective Investigation and Documentation of Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (Istanbul Protocol).

Non-refoulement

28. The Committee welcomes Cameroon’s stance on refugees but regrets that the implementing decree of Act No. 2005/006 of 27 July 2005 on the status of refugees has not yet been adopted. It is concerned about the power of officials at border crossings to turn away persons judged to be undesirable and to decide on whether or not a person may enter the State party’s territory. It also regrets the lack of information on legal remedies aimed at ensuring that such persons are not in real danger of being subjected to torture or cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment in the receiving country, or subsequently being deported to another country in which they would be in real danger of being subjected to torture or cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment (art. 3).

The Committee recommends that the State party adopt, as a matter of urgency, the implementing decree of Act No. 2005/006 of 27 July 2005 on the status of refugees. The State party should also revise its current procedures and practices in the area of expulsion, refoulement and extradition in order to fulfil its obligations under article 3 of the Convention.

Practices harmful to women

29. The Committee reiterates its previous concluding observations on the subject of harmful practices such as female genital mutilation and breast ironing in some parts of the country and among refugees in Cameroon. The State party has not taken sustained and systematic action to eliminate these practices (CAT/C/34/Add.17, para. 11 (c)) (arts. 1, 2, 10 and 16).

The Committee recommends that the State party pass legislation to prohibit female genital mutilation and other harmful traditional practices, in particular breast ironing, no matter what the circumstances, and to ensure its effective enforcement. It also urges the State party to devise programmes to offer alternative sources of income to those who earn their living by performing female genital mutilation and other harmful traditional practices. It should also step up efforts, through information programmes, to raise awareness and educate both women and men regarding the pressing need to put an end to the practices of female genital mutilation and breast ironing.

Violence against women

30. The Committee is concerned about the high rate of violence against women and girls, especially the widespread domestic violence that continues to go unpunished. In addition, it reiterates its previous recommendation, in which it encouraged the State party to amend its legislation to end the exemption from punishment of rapists who marry their victims, where the victims were minors when the crime was committed (CAT/C/CR/31/6, para. 11 (d)) (arts. 1, 2, 10 and 16).

The Committee recommends that the State party raise public awareness, through information and education programmes, of the fact that all forms of violence against women and girls constitute a violation of the Convention. The Committee urges the State party to ensure that violence against women and girls, including domestic violence, rape (even marital rape), and all forms of sexual abuse, is made a criminal offence, that perpetrators are prosecuted and punished and that their victims are rehabilitated, and that female victims of violence may seek immediate redress, protection and compensation. In addition, the Committee urges the State party to remove any impediments to access to justice by women and girls and recommends that legal assistance be made available to victims of violence. Moreover, the Committee reiterates its previous recommendation on the amendment of legislation that exempts from punishment rapists who marry their victims.

Collection of statistical data

31. The Committee notes that it did receive some statistical data but regrets the lack of detailed disaggregated data on complaints, investigations, prosecutions and convictions in cases of torture and cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment attributed to members of the security forces, as well as on trafficking in persons, domestic violence and sexual violence (arts. 1, 2, 12, 13, 14 and 16).

The State party should establish an effective system for collecting statistics to allow monitoring of the national implementation of the Convention, especially on complaints, investigations, criminal prosecutions, convictions and compensation paid in cases of torture and ill-treatment, violence among prisoners, trafficking in persons and domestic and sexual violence. The Committee realizes that the collection of personal data raises sensitive confidentiality issues, and emphasizes that appropriate measures should be taken to avoid misuse of data.

32. The Committee takes note of the State party’s response to the recommendation made in the course of the universal periodic review that it ratify the Optional Protocol to the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment and that it set up a national preventive mechanism (A/HRC/11/21/Add.1, Recommendation 76 [1]), and encourages it to take all the necessary steps to ratify it as soon as possible.

33. The Committee encourages the State party to continue working with the Centre for Human Rights and Democracy in Central Africa, the subregional bureau of the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, in order to implement the Committee’s recommendations.

34. The State party should establish effective mechanisms to collect data and generate criminal and criminology statistics and all statistics relevant to monitoring of the nationwide implementation of the Convention. The State party should thus provide in its next periodic report the following data, which will facilitate the Committee’s assessment of the implementation of its obligations under the Convention:

(a) Statistics on the capacity and population of every prison in Cameroon, including data disaggregated by gender and age group (adults/children), and differentiating between prisoners in pretrial detention and convicts;

(b) Statistics on violence in detention centres and police and gendarmerie stations;

(c) Statistics on complaints of alleged torture and action taken;

(d) Statistics on corruption among law enforcement officials and penalties imposed;

(e) Statistics on cases of extradition, expulsion or refoulement;

(f) Statistics on violence against women and children and outcomes of prosecutions initiated.

35. The State party is encouraged to disseminate widely the reports submitted by Cameroon and the concluding observations of the Committee in the appropriate languages and by all appropriate means, including through the media and NGOs.

36. The Committee invites the State party to update its core document of 19 June 2000 (HRI/CORE/1/Add.109) in accordance with the harmonized guidelines on reporting, approved recently by the international human rights treaty monitoring bodies (HRI/GEN/2/Rev.6).

37. The Committee urges the State party to ratify the International Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance, which it signed on 6 February 2007.

38. The Committee requests the State party to provide it, within one year, with information on the follow-up to the Committee’s recommendations in paragraphs 14, 18, 19 and 25 above.

39. The Committee requests the State party to submit its fifth periodic report by 14 May 2014 at the latest.