CAT/C/BGR/CO/6 5. The Committee also welcomes the initiatives of the State party to amend its policies, programmes and administrative measures to give effect to the Convention, including: (a) The issuance of Decree No. 152 by the Council of Ministers providing for three additional posts in the national legal aid bureau, on 17 July 2012, and the updating of the mechanism for the provision of legal aid by lawyers on duty and the increase in the budget of the national legal aid bureau by some 2 million euros, since 2013; (b) The approval by the Minister of Justice of the strategy for preventing and countering corruption in the Chief Directorate for the Execution of Sentences, in 2012; (c) The adoption of the National Strategy of the Republic of Bulgaria for Roma Integration (2012–2020), which includes reference to, inter alia, counteracting hate speech in print and electronic media; (d) The adoption by the Ministry of the Interior of the Ordinance on the use of force and special means, in 2015; (e) The adoption of the national strategy for preventing and countering corruption for the period 2015–2020, in April 2015, and the establishment of a national council on anti-corruption policies, in May 2015; (f) The adoption by the Council of Ministers of the national programme for preventing and protecting victims of domestic violence, as submitted by the Ministry of the Interior, on 29 April 2015; (g) The adoption of the national strategy on migration, asylum and integration for the period 2015–2020, on 10 June 2015; (h) C. The adoption of a national anti-trafficking strategy for the period 2017–2021. Principal subjects of concern and recommendations Pending follow-up questions from the previous reporting cycle 6. In paragraph 35 of its previous concluding observations (CAT/C/BGR/CO/4-5), the Committee requested Bulgaria to provide further information regarding areas of particular concern identified by the Committee in paragraph 9, on the enjoyment of fundamental legal safeguards by persons deprived of their liberty, paragraph 10, on the excessive use of force and firearms by law enforcement officers, and paragraph 28, regarding manifestations of discrimination and intolerance, including hate speech and acts of violence, against certain national, religious and sexual minorities. The Committee expresses its appreciation for the State party’s follow-up response on those matters and the substantive information provided on 21 December 2012 (CAT/C/BGR/CO/4-5/Add.1). In view of that information, the Committee considers that the recommendations included in paragraphs 9, 10 and 28 mentioned above have been partially implemented (see paras. 9–12, 29 and 30 of the present document). Definition of torture and torture as a separate crime in the Criminal Code 7. While noting that, during the universal periodic review in May 2015, the State party accepted the recommendation to adopt a definition of torture that includes all elements present in the Convention, it remains concerned that, to date, a comprehensive definition of torture incorporating all the elements contained in article 1 of the Convention has not been incorporated into the Criminal Code. It is also concerned that torture is not criminalized as a separate offence in law and that acts amounting to torture continue to be prosecuted under different articles of the Criminal Code. The Committee is further concerned that only war crimes and crimes against humanity continue to not be subjected to a statute of limitations (arts. 1 and 4). 8. The Committee reiterates its recommendation (see CAT/C/BGR/CO/4-5, para. 8) that the State party should adopt a definition of torture that covers all the elements contained in article 1 of the Convention. It should also take effective measures to include torture as a separate and specific crime in its legislation and ensure that 2

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