Alkarama and the Lebanese NGO, Cedar Centre for Legal Studies (CCLS), have called on the United Nations Committee against Torture to resume its periodic review of Lebanon at the earliest opportunity, after the process was suspended for several years.
This call comes as Lebanon has yet to submit its second periodic report, which was due on 12 May 2021, with the Committee having last reviewed the country in 2017. This prolonged absence of review is concerning given the continued allegations of torture and ill-treatment and the still limited implementation of the numerous recommendations made by the Committee.
Evidence of systematic torture
The Committee’s concerns regarding Lebanon are not new. In 2008, Alkarama submitted a report to the Committee under Article 20 of the Convention, documenting a systematic practice of torture in the country, on the basis of which the Committee opened a confidential inquiry. This procedure enables the Committee to conduct an inquiry when it receives reliable information indicating that torture is being systematically practised.
Following this procedure, the UN experts concluded that there were well-founded indications of the systematic practice of torture in Lebanon and issued 34 recommendations, aimed in particular at preventing torture, ensuring effective investigations and strengthening safeguards for persons deprived of their liberty. In its 2017 concluding observations, the Committee further noted the limited level of implementation of these recommendations.
Gaps in the legal and institutional framework against torture
The shortcomings identified by the Committee notably concern the effective implementation of the legal and institutional framework established to prevent and punish torture.
While the adoption of Law No. 65/2017 criminalising torture represented a step forward, nearly nine years after its adoption, its implementation remains negligible. Concerns persist, particularly regarding investigations and prosecutions into allegations of torture, the use of military justice, safeguards for persons deprived of their liberty, and the effective establishment of the national preventive mechanism.
In their appeal to the Committee, the two NGOs stressed that resuming the review would make it possible to assess the progress made since its last review, take stock of the implementation of its recommendations, and identify the measures that are still needed to ensure Lebanon’s effective compliance with its obligations under the Convention. It would also provide an opportunity to examine safeguards for persons deprived of their liberty, victims’ access to justice and remedies, and the effectiveness of investigations into allegations of torture, ill-treatment and deaths in custody.
Finally, the NGOs called on the Committee against Torture to urge the Lebanese authorities to submit their periodic report without further delay and to schedule the review of Lebanon at the earliest opportunity.