1. HUMAN RIGHTS LAW. Ahmed T. Ghandour.

2. HUMAN RIGHTS IN EUROPE II. OTHER INSTRUMENTS AND PROCEDURES.

3. 1, THE PROMOTIONAL ACTIVITIES OF THE COUNCIL OF EUROPE.

4.  The Council of Europe, with its 47 member states, has played a key role in the promotion of human rights in Europe, as it is had been mentioned in Art.1of the statute by more realization in the field of human rights.  For protection its main human rights instrument is the European Convention on the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms (ECHR).  This has been accepted by all the member states in the Council of Europe, since it is a requirement for membership. It was adopted in 1950 and came into force three years later.  It provides for civil and political rights and its main strength is its implementation machinery, the European Court of Human Rights. This court and its jurisprudence are admired throughout the world and are often referred to by the UN and by constitutional courts of numerous countries and other regional systems.

5.  So protection means involving a judicial application of standards which have been agreed on,  But for the promotion of human rights the Council invented a legislated procedure of two types of instruments: 1) treaties. (pending). 2) recommendations. (not pending). All are depend on states response, so there is always a forum for initiatives or proposals for new measures.

6. THE PROCESS OF SUCH PROCEDURE.  1. Proposal by the Parliamentary Assembly.  2. Review by Legal Affairs Committee.  3. Recommendation to the Committee of Ministers.  4. Study by the Governmental Experts.  5. Recommendation back to the Committee of Ministers.  6. Legal text with a new promotion to be followed. It could be a treaty, protocol or recommendation to follow, that all depend on the consensus of the states members and based on personal data within a confidentially limits.

7.  Add to that; the Council of Europe also attends the UN Human Rights Council sessions, and scourging Eastern European countries for more democracy.  So in this sense, human rights instruments will continue to be revised and advanced for un limited time.

8. MAIN HUMAN RIGHTS INSTRUMENTS AND IMPLEMENTATION MECHANISMS OF THE COUNCIL OF EUROPE

10. II. THE EUROPEAN CONVENTION FOR THE PREVENTION OF TORTURE.

11. THE TEXT OF THE CONVENTION.  The member States of the Council of Europe, signatory hereto, Having regard to the provisions of the Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms, Recalling that, under Article 3 of the same Convention, "no one shall be subjected to torture or to inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment"; Noting that the machinery provided for in that Convention operates in relation to persons who allege that they are victims of violations of Article 3; Convinced that the protection of persons deprived of their liberty against torture and inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment could be strengthened by non-judicial means of a preventive character based on visits, Have agreed as follows:

12.  Chapter I  Article 1  There shall be established a European Committee for the Prevention of Torture and Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (hereinafter referred to as "the Committee"). The Committee shall, by means of visits, examine the treatment of persons deprived of their liberty with a view to strengthening, if necessary, the protection of such persons from torture and from inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment.  Article 2  Each Party shall permit visits, in accordance with this Convention, to any place within its jurisdiction where persons are deprived of their liberty by a public authority.  Article 3  In the application of this Convention, the Committee and the competent national authorities of the Party concerned shall co-operate with each other.

13.  Article 4  1 The Committee shall consist of a number of members equal to that of the Parties.  2 The members of the Committee shall be chosen from among persons of high moral character, known for their competence in the field of human rights or having professional experience in the areas covered by this Convention.  3 No two members of the Committee may be nationals of the same State.  4 The members shall serve in their individual capacity, shall be independent and impartial, and shall be available to serve the Committee effectively.

14.  Article 7  1 The Committee shall organise visits to places referred to in Article 2. Apart from periodic visits, the Committee may organise such other visits as appear to it to be required in the circumstances.  2 As a general rule, the visits shall be carried out by at least two members of the Committee. The Committee may, if it considers it necessary, be assisted by experts and interpreters.

15. THE EUROPEAN COMMITTEE FOR THE PREVENTION OF TORTURE

16. BACKGROUND  The CPT was set up under the Council of Europe’s “European Convention for the Prevention of Torture and Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment”, which came into force in 1989.  It builds on Article 3 of the European Convention on Human Rights which provides that: “No one shall be subjected to torture or to inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment”.  The CPT is not an investigative body, but provides a non-judicial preventive mechanism to protect persons deprived of their liberty against torture and other forms of ill-treatment. It thus complements the judicial work of the European Court of Human Rights.

17. THE PURPOSE OF THE CONVENTION.  Preventing ill-treatment of persons deprived of their liberty in Europe  The CPT organises visits to places of detention, in order to assess how persons deprived of their liberty are treated. These places include prisons, juvenile detention centres, police stations, holding centres for immigration detainees, psychiatric hospitals, social care homes, etc.  CPT delegations have unlimited access to places of detention, and the right to move inside such places without restriction. They interview persons deprived of their liberty in private, and communicate freely with anyone who can provide information.

18.  After each visit, the CPT sends a detailed report to the State concerned. This report includes the CPT’s findings, and its recommendations, comments and requests for information. The CPT also requests a detailed response to the issues raised in its report. These reports and responses form part of the ongoing dialogue with the States concerned.  The CPT’s full title is the “European Committee for the Prevention of Torture and Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment”. This highlights two important features: first, it is European, and second, it not only covers “torture”, but also a whole range of situations which could amount to “inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment”.

19. STRUCTURE OF THE CPT.  The CPT's members are independent and impartial experts from a variety of backgrounds, including lawyers, medical doctors and specialists in prison or police matters.  One member is elected by the Council of Europe’s Committee of Ministers in respect of each State Party. The members serve in their individual capacity (that is, they do not represent the State in respect of which they have been elected). To further guarantee independence, members do not visit the State in respect of which they have been elected.  The Secretariat of the CPT forms part of the Council of Europe.

20. A SYSTEM OF VISITS.  Visits are carried out by delegations, usually made up of several CPT members, accompanied by staff members of the Committee's Secretariat and, if necessary, by additional experts and interpreters.  CPT delegations carry out visits on a periodic basis (usually once every four years), but additional “ad hoc” visits are carried out when necessary.  The Committee must notify the State concerned that it intends to carry out a visit. After notification, the CPT delegation may go to any place where persons may be deprived of their liberty at any time and without notice.

21. CO-OPERATION AND CONFIDENTIALITY  The principles of co-operation and confidentiality are embodied in the international convention which establishes the CPT.  Co-operation with the national authorities is at the heart of the CPT’s work, since the aim is to protect persons deprived of their liberty rather than to condemn States for abuses.  Confidentiality is another characteristic of the work of the CPT: the Committee’s findings, its reports and the governments’ responses are, in principle, confidential. Nevertheless, a great deal of information about the CPT’s work is in the public domain.

22. PUBLICATIONS.  The State itself may request publication of the CPT’s report, together with its own response. So far, most States have chosen to publish these documents.  If a State fails to co-operate or refuses to improve the situation in the light of the CPT's recommendations, the Committee may decide to make a public statement.  In addition, the CPT draws up a general Report on its activities, which is published once a year.