Scope of the Body of Principles
These
principles apply for the protection of all persons under any form of detention
or imprisonment.
Use of Terms
For
the purposes of the Body of Principles:
(a)
"Arrest" means the act of apprehending a person for the alleged
commission of an offence or by the action of an authority;
(b)
"Detained person" means any person deprived of personal liberty
except as a result of conviction for an offence;
(c)
"Imprisoned person" means any person deprived of personal liberty as
a result of conviction for an offence;
(d)
"Detention" means the condition of detained persons as defined above;
(e)
"Imprisonment" means the condition of imprisoned persons as defined
above;
(f)
The words "a judicial or other authority" means a judicial or other
authority under the law whose status and tenure should afford the strongest
possible guarantees of competence, impartiality and independence.
All persons under any form of
detention or imprisonment shall be treated in a humane manner and with respect
for the inherent dignity of the human person.
Arrest, detention or imprisonment
shall only be carried out strictly in accordance with the provisions of the law
and by competent officials or persons authorized for that purpose.
There shall be no restriction upon
or derogation from any of the human rights of persons under any form of
detention or imprisonment recognized or existing in any State pursuant to law,
conventions, regulations or custom on the pretext that this Body of Principles
does not recognize such rights or that it recognizes them to a lesser extent.
Any form of detention or
imprisonment and all measures affecting the human rights of a person under any
form of detention or imprisonment shall be ordered by, or be subject to the
effective control of, a judicial or other authority.
1. These principles shall be
applied to all persons within the territory of any given State, without
distinction of any kind, such as race, colour, sex, language, religion or religious
belief, political or other opinion, national, ethnic or social origin,
property, birth or other status.
2.
Measures applied under the law and designed solely to protect the rights and
special status of women, especially pregnant women and nursing mothers,
children and juveniles, aged, sick or handicapped persons shall not be deemed
to be discriminatory. The need for, and the application of, such measures shall
always be subject to review by a judicial or other authority.
No person under any form of
detention or imprisonment shall be subjected to torture or to cruel, inhuman or
degrading treatment or punishment.* No circumstance whatever may be invoked as
a justification for torture or other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment.
1. States should prohibit by law
any act contrary to the rights and duties contained in these principles, make
any such act subject to appropriate sanctions and conduct impartial
investigations upon complaints.
*
The term "cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment" should
be interpreted so as to extend the widest possible protection against abuses,
whether physical or mental, including the holding of a detained or imprisoned
person in conditions which deprive him, temporarily or permanently. of the use
of any of his natural senses, such as sight or hearing, or of his awareness of
place and the passing of time.
2.
Officials who have reason to believe that a violation of this Body of
Principles has occurred or is about to occur shall report the matter to their
superior authorities and, where necessary, to other appropriate authorities or
organs vested with reviewing or remedial powers.
3.
Any other person who has ground to believe that a violation of this Body of
Principles has occurred or is about to occur shall have the right to report the
matter to the superiors of the officials involved as well as to other
appropriate authorities or organs vested with reviewing or remedial powers.
Persons in detention shall be
subject to treatment appropriate to their unconvicted status. Accordingly, they
shall, whenever possible, be kept separate from imprisoned persons.
The authorities which arrest a
person, keep him under detention or investigate the case shall exercise only
the powers granted to them under the law and the exercise of these powers shall
be subject to recourse to a judicial or other authority.
Anyone who is arrested shall be
informed at the time of his arrest of the reason for his arrest and shall be
promptly informed of any charges against him.
1. A person shall not be kept in
detention without being given an effective opportunity to be heard promptly by
a judicial or other authority. A detained person shall have the right to defend
himself or to be assisted by counsel as prescribed by law.
2.
A detained person and his counsel, if any, shall receive prompt and full
communication of any order of detention, together with the reasons therefor.
3.
A judicial or other authority shall be empowered to review as appropriate the
continuance of detention.
1. There shall be duly recorded:
(a)
The reasons for the arrest; (b) The time of the arrest and the taking of the
arrested person to a place of custody as well as that of his first appearance
before a judicial or other authority;
(c)
The identity of the law enforcement officials concerned;
(d)
Precise information concerning the place of custody.
2.
Such records shall be communicated to the detained person, or his counsel, if
any, in the form prescribed by law.
Any person shall, at the moment of
arrest and at the commencement of detention or imprisonment, or promptly
thereafter, be provided by the authority responsible for his arrest, detention
or imprisonment, respectively with information on and an explanation of his
rights and how to avail himself of such rights.
A person who does not adequately
understand or speak the language used by the authorities responsible for his
arrest, detention or imprisonment is entitled to receive promptly in a language
which he understands the information referred to in principle 10, principle 11,
paragraph 2, principle 12, paragraph 1, and principle 13 and to have the assistance,
free of charge, if necessary, of an interpreter in connection with legal
proceedings subsequent to his arrest.
Notwithstanding the exceptions
contained in principle 16, paragraph 4, and principle 18, paragraph 3,
communication of the detained or imprisoned person with the outside world, and
in particular his family or counsel, shall not be denied for more than a matter
of days.
1. Promptly after arrest and after
each transfer from one place of detention or imprisonment to another, a
detained or imprisoned person shall be entitled to notify or to require the
competent authority to notify members of his family or other appropriate
persons of his choice of his arrest, detention or imprisonment or of the
transfer and of the place where he is kept in custody.
2.
If a detained or imprisoned person is a foreigner, he shall also be promptly
informed of his right to communicate by appropriate means with a consular post
or the diplomatic mission of the State of which he is a national or which is
otherwise entitled to receive such communication in accordance with
international law or with the representative of the competent international
organization, if he is a refugee or is otherwise under the protection of an
intergovernmental organization.
3.
If a detained or imprisoned person is a juvenile or is incapable of
understanding his entitlement, the competent authority shall on its own
initiative undertake the notification referred to in the present principle.
Special attention shall be given to notifying parents or guardians.
4.
Any notification referred to in the present principle shall be made or
permitted to be made without delay. The competent authority may however delay a
notification for a reasonable period where exceptional needs of the
investigation so require.
1. A detained person shall be
entitled to have the assistance of a legal counsel. He shall be informed of his
right by the competent authority promptly after arrest and shall be provided
with reasonable facilities for exercising it.
2.
If a detained person does not have a legal counsel of his own choice, he shall
be entitled to have a legal counsel assigned to him by a judicial or other
authority in all cases where the interests of justice so require and without
payment by him if he does not have sufficient means to pay.
1. A detained or imprisoned person
shall be entitled to communicate and consult with his legal counsel.
2.
A detained or imprisoned person shall be allowed adequate time and facilities
for consultation with his legal counsel.
3.
The right of a detained or imprisoned person to be visited by and to consult
and communicate, without delay or censorship and in full confidentiality, with
his legal counsel may not be suspended or restricted save in exceptional
circumstances, to be specified by law or lawful regulations, when it is
considered indispensable by a judicial or other authority in order to maintain
security and good order.
4.
Interviews between a detained or imprisoned person and his legal counsel may be
within sight, but not within the hearing, of a law enforcement official.
5.
Communications between a detained or imprisoned person and his legal counsel
mentioned in the present principle shall be inadmissible as evidence against
the detained or imprisoned person unless they are connected with a continuing
or contemplated crime.
A detained or imprisoned person
shall have the right to be visited by and to correspond with, in particular,
members of his family and shall be given adequate opportunity to communicate
with the outside world, subject to reasonable conditions and restrictions as
specified by law or lawful regulations.
If a detained or imprisoned person
so requests, he shall if possible be kept in a place of detention or
imprisonment reasonably near his usual place of residence.
1. It shall be prohibited to take
undue advantage of the situation of a detained or imprisoned person for the purpose
of compelling him to confess, to incriminate himself otherwise or to testify
against any other person.
2.
No detained person while being interrogated shall be subject to violence,
threats or methods of interrogation which impair his capacity of decision or
his judgement.
No detained or imprisoned person
shall, even with his consent, be subjected to any medical or scientific
experimentation which may be detrimental to his health.
1. The duration of any
interrogation of a detained or imprisoned person and of the intervals between
interrogations as well as the identity of the officials who conducted the
interrogations and other persons present shall be recorded and certified in
such form as may be prescribed by law.
2.
A detained or imprisoned person, or his counsel when provided by law, shall
have access to the information described in paragraph 1 of the present
principle.
A proper medical examination shall
be offered to a detained or imprisoned person as promptly as possible after his
admission to the place of detention or imprisonment, and thereafter medical
care and treatment shall be provided whenever necessary. This care and
treatment shall be provided free of charge.
A detained or imprisoned person or
his counsel shall, subject only to reasonable conditions to ensure security and
good order in the place of detention or imprisonment, have the right to request
or petition a judicial or other authority for a second medical examination or
opinion.
The fact that a detained or
imprisoned person underwent a medical examination, the name of the physician
and the results of such an examination shall be duly recorded. Access to such
records shall be ensured. Modalities therefore shall be in accordance with
relevant rules of domestic law.
Non-compliance with these
principles in obtaining evidence shall be taken into account in determining the
admissibility of such evidence against a detained or imprisoned person.
A detained or imprisoned person
shall have the right to obtain within the limits of available resources, if
from public sources, reasonable quantities of educational, cultural and
informational material, subject to reasonable conditions to ensure security and
good order in the place of detention or imprisonment.
1. In order to supervise the
strict observance of relevant laws and regulations, places of detention shall
be visited regularly by qualified and experienced persons appointed by, and
responsible to, a competent authority distinct from the authority directly in
charge of the administration of the place of detention or imprisonment.
2.
A detained or imprisoned person shall have the right to communicate freely and
in full confidentiality with the persons who visit the places of detention or
imprisonment in accordance with paragraph 1 of the present principle, subject
to reasonable conditions to ensure security and good order in such places.
1. The types of conduct of the
detained or imprisoned person that constitute disciplinary offences during
detention or imprisonment, the description and duration of disciplinary
punishment that may be inflicted and the authorities competent to impose such
punishment shall be specified by law or lawful regulations and duly published.
2.
A detained or imprisoned person shall have the right to be heard before
disciplinary action is taken. He shall have the right to bring such action to higher
authorities for review.
The appropriate authorities shall
endeavour to ensure, according to domestic law, assistance when needed to
dependent and, in particular, minor members of the families of detained or
imprisoned persons and shall devote a particular measure of care to the
appropriate custody of children left with out supervision.
1. A detained person or his
counsel shall be entitled at any time to take proceedings according to domestic
law before a judicial or other authority to challenge the lawfulness of his
detention in order to obtain his release without delay, if it is unlawful.
2.
The proceedings referred to in paragraph 1 of the present principle shall be
simple and expeditious and at no cost for detained persons without adequate
means. The detaining authority shall produce without unreasonable delay the
detained person before the reviewing authority.
1. A detained or imprisoned person
or his counsel shall have the right to make a request or complaint regarding
his treatment, in particular in case of torture or other cruel, inhuman or
degrading treatment, to the authorities responsible for the administration of
the place of detention and to higher authorities and, when necessary, to
appropriate authorities vested with reviewing or remedial powers.
2.
In those cases where neither the detained or imprisoned person nor his counsel
has the possibility to exercise his rights under paragraph 1 of the present
principle, a member of the family of the detained or imprisoned person or any
other person who has knowledge of the case may exercise such rights.
3.
Confidentiality concerning the request or complaint shall be maintained if so
requested by the complainant.
4.
Every request or complaint shall be promptly dealt with and replied to without
undue delay. If the request or complaint is rejected or, in case of inordinate
delay, the complainant shall be entitled to bring it before a judicial or other
authority. Neither the detained or imprisoned person nor any complainant under
paragraph 1 of the present principle shall suffer prejudice for making a
request or complaint.
Whenever the death or
disappearance of a detained or imprisoned person occurs during his detention or
imprisonment, an inquiry into the cause of death or disappearance shall be held
by a judicial or other authority, either on its own motion or at the instance
of a member of the family of such a person or any person who has knowledge of
the case. When circumstances so warrant, such an inquiry shall be held on the
same procedural basis whenever the death or disappearance occurs shortly after
the termination of the detention or imprisonment. The findings of such inquiry
or a report thereon shall be made available upon request, unless doing so would
jeopardize an ongoing criminal investigation.
1. Damage incurred because of acts
or omissions by a public official contrary to the rights contained in these
principles shall be compensated according to the applicable rules or liability
provided by domestic law.
2.
Information required to be recorded under these principles shall be available
in accordance with procedures provided by domestic law for use in claiming
compensation under the present principle.
1. A detained person suspected of
or charged with a criminal offence shall be presumed innocent and shall be
treated as such until proved guilty according to law in a public trial at which
he has had all the guarantees necessary for his defence.
2.
The arrest or detention of such a person pending investigation and trial shall
be carried out only for the purposes of the administration of justice on
grounds and under conditions and procedures specified by law. The imposition of
restrictions upon such a person which are not strictly required for the purpose
of the detention or to prevent hindrance to the process of investigation or the
administration of justice, or for the maintenance of security and good order in
the place of detention shall be forbidden.
A person detained on a criminal
charge shall be brought before a judicial or other authority provided by law
promptly after his arrest. Such authority shall decide without delay upon the
lawfulness and necessity of detention. No person may be kept under detention
pending investigation or trial except upon the written order of such an
authority. A detained person shall, when brought before such an authority, have
the right to make a statement on the treatment received by him while in
custody.
A person detained on a criminal
charge shall be entitled to trial within a reasonable time or to release
pending trial.
Except in special cases provided for
by law, a person detained on a criminal charge shall be entitled, unless a
judicial or other authority decides otherwise in the interest of the
administration of justice, to release pending trial subject to the conditions
that may be imposed in accordance with the law. Such authority shall keep the
necessity of detention under review.
General clause
Nothing
in this Body of Principles shall be construed as restricting or derogating from
any right defined in the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights.