CAT/OP/CRI/ROSP/1
I. Introduction
1.
In accordance with its mandate under the Optional Protocol to the Convention against
Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment, the Subcommittee
on Prevention of Torture carried out its first visit to Costa Rica from 3 to 14 March 2019.
2.
The Subcommittee members conducting the visit were: Roberto Fehér Pérez (head of
delegation), María Dolores Gómez, María Luisa Romero, Nora Sveaass and Juan Pablo
Vegas. The Subcommittee was assisted by three human rights officers from the Office of the
United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) and two United Nations
security officers.
3.
The Subcommittee met with the individuals listed in annex I and visited the places of
deprivation of liberty listed in annex II. It also held meetings with members of the national
preventive mechanism and visited a centre of deprivation of liberty with them in order to
observe their working methods.
4.
At the end of the visit, the delegation presented its confidential preliminary
observations orally to the national authorities. In the present report, the Subcommittee sets
out, on the basis of its findings, its conclusions and recommendations relevant to the
prevention of torture and ill-treatment1 of persons deprived of their liberty in Costa Rica.
5.
The Subcommittee recommends that the present report be distributed to all
relevant authorities, departments and institutions.
6.
The present report will remain confidential until such time as Costa Rica decides to
make it public. The Subcommittee informs the State party that, in order to request funding
from the Special Fund, established under article 26 of the Optional Protocol to help finance
the implementation of the recommendations contained in the Subcommittee’s reports, those
reports must be made public.
7.
The Subcommittee recommends that Costa Rica request the publication of the
present report in accordance with article 16 (2) of the Optional Protocol.
8.
The Subcommittee wishes to express its gratitude to the authorities and to the liaison
officer for their assistance in the planning of the visit. It regrets, however, that three units of
the Judicial Investigation Agency located in San José and elsewhere in the country did not
allow the Subcommittee to interview prisoners in their cells, allegedly for reasons of security.
Although the Subcommittee informed the authorities of that lack of cooperation during its
visit, the problem was not resolved.
II. National preventive mechanism
9.
Costa Rica designated the Ombudsman’s Office as its national preventive mechanism
by executive decree in 2006. The mechanism began operating as an independent unit within
the Ombudsman’s Office in January 2009 and, in 2015, was designated as a “highly
decentralized body” attached to the Ombudsman’s Office. During its visit, the Subcommittee
observed good working relations between the Ombudsman’s Office and the mechanism.
Generally speaking, the mechanism is an independent body; there were no reports of
interference by the Ombudsman’s Office in the fulfilment of its mandate, the allocation of its
budget or the recruitment and hiring of its staff.
10.
The Subcommittee noted with satisfaction that the mechanism carries out its work in
an extremely professional manner and makes a valuable contribution to the prevention of
torture. The mechanism’s reports contain extensive information relating to its observations
and its recommendations are used to inform decisions by the judicial and executive branches
of power.
1
GE.21-00153
The present report uses the generic term “ill-treatment” to refer to any form of cruel, inhuman or
degrading treatment or punishment, in accordance with article 16 of the Convention against Torture.
3