The UN Subcommittee on Prevention of Torture (SPT) will make its first visit to Albania from 14 to 20 April to assess the treatment of people deprived of their liberty and examine the existing safeguards to protect them from torture and ill-treatment.
The SPT delegation is going to visit places such as prisons, police stations, detention centres and other facilities where people are deprived of liberty. The delegation will also meet with government officials and the national monitoring body, officially known as the national preventive mechanism (NPM) of Albania, as well as civil society representatives.
“During our visit, we will assess measures in place to effectively prevent torture and ill-treatment of people deprived of their liberty, and advise the authorities on additional steps that can contribute to the full implementation of their treaty obligations,” said Vasiliki Artinopoulou, who will head the SPT delegation. “We will also cooperate with the NPM in Albania, including by carrying out joint visits with them, in order to cement their crucial work in torture prevention.”
This will be the first SPT’s visit to Albania after the State party ratified the Optional Protocol to the Convention against Torture (OPCAT) in 2003.
The SPT is mandated to visit all States that are parties to OPCAT. At the end of the visit, the SPT will present its confidential preliminary observations to the Government of Albania.
The SPT delegation will be composed of Vasiliki Artinopoulou, Head of the Delegation (Greece), Suzanne Jabbour (Lebanon), Nika Kvaratskhelia (Georgia), and Zdenka Perović (Montenegro). The delegation will be accompanied by two human rights officers from the SPT Secretariat.
