CAT/C/67/D/723/2015
United Nations
Convention against Torture
and Other Cruel, Inhuman
or Degrading Treatment
or Punishment
Distr.: General
4 September 2019
Original: English
Committee against Torture
Decision adopted by the Committee under article 22 of the
Convention, concerning communication No. 723/2015*, **
Communication submitted by:
V.M. (represented by counsel, John Sweeney)
Alleged victim:
The complainant
State party:
Australia
Date of complaint:
30 December 2015 (initial submission)
Document references:
Decision taken pursuant to rule 115 of the
Committee’s rules of procedure, transmitted to
the State party on 30 December 2015 (not issued
in document form)
Date of adoption of decision:
2 August 2019
Subject matter:
Deportation to Sri Lanka
Procedural issue:
Admissibility – manifestly ill-founded
Substantive issue:
Risk of torture in the event of deportation to
country of origin (non-refoulement)
Article of the Convention:
3
1.1
The complainant is V.M., a national of Sri Lanka born in 1967. His request for
asylum in Australia was rejected, and he is facing deportation to Sri Lanka. The
complainant asserts that, if Australia were to proceed with his deportation, that would
violate its obligations under article 3 of the Convention. The State party made the
declaration under article 22 (1) of the Convention on 28 January 1993. The complainant is
represented by counsel.
1.2
On 30 December 2015, pursuant to rule 114, paragraph 1, of its rules of procedure,
the Committee, acting through its Rapporteur on new complaints and interim measures,
requested the State party not to deport the complainant to Sri Lanka while the
communication was being considered by the Committee. On 20 December 2016, the
Committee granted the request of the State party to lift the interim measures.
* Adopted by the Committee at its sixty-seventh session (22 July–9 August 2019).
** The following members of the Committee participated in the examination of the communication:
Essadia Belmir, Felice Gaer, Abdelwahab Hani, Claude Heller Rouassant, Jens Modvig, Ana Racu,
Diego Rodríguez-Pinzón, Sébastien Touzé and Bakhtiyar Tuzmukhamedov.
GE.19-15113(E)