CAT/C/23/D/60/1996
page 3
1.
The author of the communication is Mr. Khaled Ben M’Barek, a Tunisian national
currently residing in France, where he enjoys refugee status. He submits a written authorization
from Jamel Baraket, the elder brother of Faisal Baraket (deceased), to act on his behalf. He
claims that Faisal Baraket and his family are victims of violations by Tunisia of articles 2, 11,
12, 13 and 14 of the Convention.
The facts as submitted by the author
2.1
The author affirms that Faisal Baraket, together with others, was arrested on the morning
of 8 October 1991 by members of the Criminal Investigation Brigade of the Nabeul National
Guard. Mr. Baraket was an activist in the Tunisian General Students’ Union and a member of
Al-Nahda, an unofficial political party. He knew that the police were looking for him and had
therefore gone into hiding. After his arrest, during which he was beaten, he was brought to the
headquarters of the Brigade where he was taken to the office of Captain Abdelfattah Ladib, the
officer in charge.
2.2
The author affirms that, according to the account given by fellow detainees of
Faisal Baraket whom he reportedly met subsequently, in the presence of the captain and the
police officers Abdelkrim Zemmali, Mohamed Kabbous and Mohamed Moumni, as well as
Fadhel, Salah and Taoufik (last names unknown to the author), Faisal Baraket’s hands and feet
were immediately bound and he was suspended between two chairs on a big stick, with his head
down and the soles of his feet and his buttocks exposed, in what is commonly called the “roast
chicken” position. He was then beaten. Some of the officers later threw him out into the
corridor after bringing another detainee into the office. Faisal Baraket was in a very bad way
and seemed to be dying. The officers nevertheless prohibited the 30 or so detainees present,
including his own brother Jamel, from giving him assistance.
2.3
After half an hour, in view of the fact that he was no longer moving, two detainees were
permitted to lay him on a bench and untie him. When they discovered that he was dead, they
told the guard who then informed his superior. The detainees were then separated from the
victim and confined to one side of the corridor. Finally, two male nurses from Nabeul
University Hospital arrived, accompanied by the general superintendent of the hospital, who
supervised the removal of the corpse.
2.4
On 17 October 1991, Hedi Baraket, the father of Faisal Baraket, was taken to Tunis by
the Chief of the Traffic Brigade and was informed that his son had died in a car accident. At the
Charles Nicole Hospital, he was asked to identify the body. He noted that the face was
disfigured and difficult to recognize. He was not permitted to see the rest of the body. He was
made to sign a statement acknowledging that his son had been killed in an accident. His other
son, Jamel, was still in prison at that time. At the funeral, the police brought the coffin and
supervised its interment without it being opened.