CAT/C/CR/33/2
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B. Positive aspects
4.
The Committee notes the following positive developments:
(a)
The ongoing efforts by the State party to revise its legislation and adopt other
necessary measures, so as to strengthen the respect for human rights in Greece and give effect to
the Convention. In particular the Committee welcomes the following:
(i)
The new Prison Code (Law 2776/99), which contains provisions intended
to, inter alia, improve living conditions in prisons and prevent inhuman
treatment of prisoners;
(ii)
Legislation facilitating the registration of aliens (Law 3274/2004);
(iii)
The new Law on Legal Aid (Law 3226/2004), which stipulates that
lawyers must be appointed to draw up and submit complaints on behalf of
torture victims and victims of trafficking, and that the prison prosecutor
has the duty to offer legal counselling to detainees;
(iv)
The new Law on Arms Possession and Use of Firearms (3169/2003),
which regulates the possession and use of firearms by police personnel;
(v)
The Law on Combating Trafficking in Human Beings (Law 3064/2002),
criminalizing trafficking and punishing the perpetrators of such crimes
with heavy sentences;
(vi)
The new Law on Compensation (2001);
(vii)
The circulars of the Chief of the Greek Police of July 2003 concerning the
detention of undocumented migrants and that of November 2003
regarding the treatment of victims of trafficking;
(b)
The establishment of a Department for Children’s Rights in the Office of the
Ombudsman (Law 3094/2003) with a mandate to, inter alia, undertake investigations and
research on specific issues considered particularly important;
(c)
The lifting of restrictive quotas (of 15 per cent) for the entry of women into the
police force;
(d)
The statement made by the delegation that it is prepared to consider modalities for
increasing cooperation with non-governmental organizations, including visits to detention
centres;
(e)
The publication of the reports of the European Committee for the Prevention of
Torture and Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment on its visit to Greece and the
Government’s response thereto (CPT/Inf(2002)31 and CPT/Inf(2002)32), which would
contribute to a general debate among all interested parties;