MINELRES: CAT recomendations to Estonia: concern on the situation of minorities
MINELRES moderator
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Wed Dec 11 08:10:43 2002
Original sender: Jelena Karzetskaja <[email protected]>
World Organisation Against Torture
P.O. Box 21- 8, rue du Vieux Billard
CH 1211 Geneva 8, Switzerland
Phone: 0041/22 809 49 39
Fax: 0041/22 809 49 29
E-mail: [email protected]
Website: www.omct.org
PRESS RELEASE
Geneva, 22 November 2002
The UN Committee Against Torture expresses its concern on the situation
of minorities in Estonia
The Legal Information Center for Human Rights and OMCT welcome the
Conclusions and Recommendations of the UN Committee Against Torture on
Estonia which took note of the situation of stateless persons, in
particular person of Russian nationality, who are over represented in
the prison population and particularly vulnerable to abuse. While
acknowledging the difficulties encountered by Estonia, the Committee
regretted that the report was submitted with more than eight years delay
and that it mainly addressed legal provisions and lacked information on
the practical implementation of the Convention. Among the positive
aspects the Committee noted the improvement of prison conditions and the
publication of the reports of the European Committee for the Prevention
of Torture. However, the Committee expressed concern over the occurrence
of isolated cases of ill-treatment and the high risk of violence between
prisoners in detention facilities and between patients in psychiatric
wards. The Committee also expressed concern on the situation of illegal
migrants and rejected asylum seekers who can be subjected to long
periods of detention and for persons of Russian nationality, and other
stateless persons, who are over represented in the prison population.
The Committee recommended, among others that: the government ensure the
close monitoring of inter-prisoner and inter-patient violence; time
limits for the detention of illegal migrants and rejected asylum seekers
be introduced; that the reasons for the over-representation of persons
of Russian nationality as well as stateless person be examined and
reported on and that the government consider ratifying the 1961
Convention on the Reduction of Stateless persons. The Legal Information
Center for Human Rights and OMCT would like to urge the government to
implement all of the Committee�s recommendations without delay. For
copies of the alternative report or for further information please
contact OMCT at + 41 22 809 4939 or [email protected].
________________________
Legal Information Centre For Human Rights
Inim�iguste Teabekeskus
Nunne 2
10133 Tallinn
Estonia
tel: (372) 64 64 270
fax: (372) 64 64 272
e-mail: [email protected]
web site: http://www.lichr.ee