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Alternative Report About Torture Situation in Peru by the Group Against Torture of the National Coordinator of Human Rights

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Alternative Report About Torture Situation in Peru by the Group Against Torture of the National Coordinator of Human Rights ALTERNATIVE REPORT ABOUT TORTURE SITUATION IN PERU BY THE GROUP AGAINST TORTURE OF THE NATIONAL COORDINATOR OF HUMAN RIGHTS I.- Presentation: The National Coordinator of Human Rights (CNDDHH) is a human right’s collective which groups 79 non-governmental organizations dedicated to defend, promote and educate in human Rights in Peru. It is also, an organization with a special consultative status in the Social and Economic Council of United Nations (UN) and is credited to participate in activities of the Organization of American States (OAS). The present report was developed by the Work Group against Torture of the CNDDHH, specifically on behalf of the Executive Secretariat of the CNDDHH, the Episcopal Commission for Social Action (CEAS), the Center for Psychosocial Care (CAPS) and the Human Rights Commission (COMISEDH). This report expects to report the human rights situation in our country, dealing specifically with problems regarding torture, taking as starting point the information delivered, on behalf of the Peruvian State, in the document called: “Sixth Periodical Report that the State parties must present in 2009, submitted in response to the list of issues (CAT/CPER/Q/6) transmitted to the State party pursuant to the optional reporting procedure (A/62/44, paras. 23 and 24). Peru” dated 28 th July 2011. The information delivered will regard issues that the Committee against Torture (CAT) has formulated to the Peruvian State, taking into account the information we have according to the lines of work of each institution which took part developing the present report. II.- Information regarding the Conventions articles ARTÍCLE 2º 1. Please give information, that will allow the Committee to have a clear vision of the situation regarding protection against torture, since 2005: Currently, in our country torture is not a systematic and/or generalized practice like it occurred during the period of the armed conflict in the 1980’s and 1990’s 1. However, we can affirm that it is an extended practice at national level due to the detection of cases in most of the regions in Peru, which are persistent; its practice has very concerning levels of repetition. Also, in many cases torture or cruel, inhuman or degrading treatments are socially accepted by some sectors of the population or the society in general, when directed to persons investigated for suspicion of having committed a crime. The Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment, is presented mainly, although not exclusively, in detention centers, such as police stations or other police facilities, against suspects or accused persons of having committed a crime; in penitentiary facilities, against sentenced inmates or persons subject to preventive detention. Also, in military facilities, against soldiers or recruits who carry out military service, basically. 1 COMISIÓN DE LA VERDAD Y RECONCIALIACIÓN. Tomo VI. La Tortura y Otros tratos crueles, inhumanos o degradantes. See: ( http://www.cverdad.org.pe/ifinal/pdf/TOMO%20VI/SECCION%20CUARTA- Crimenes%20y%20violaciones%20DDHH/FINAL-AGOSTO/1.4.LA%20TORTURA.pdf ) (web page visited on September 26th 2012). 1 In the frame of the criminalization of the social protest produced in Peru, due to a normative frame which over criminalizes conducts linked to social protest and that is very permissive regarding the violent repression on behalf of the States law enforcement agents, demonstrators or protesters in public demonstrations have been victims of torture or cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment (See numbers pointed out in part 5, paras. 5 and 7, page 5). The main perpetrators of torture are the law enforcement forces, especially and in great measure, the National Police, like agents from the National Penitentiary Institution, who work in the guard service of the aforementioned places; and the Peruvian army. However, in the last years these acts have also been committed by staff of other public forces, such as “Serenazgo” 2; and by private security forces who count with the consent of the law enforcement forces. Regarding the information about torture cases, we have not been able to obtain information from the Public Ministry. A request submitted to this entity by the CNDDHH 3 has not been answered. On the other hand, we could verify that the Observatory of Crime of the Public Ministry, virtual platform of this State organization containing information of crimes and denunciations committed at national level and registered in weekly, monthly and annual newsletters, had no data on this crime. On its behalf, the People’s Ombudsman before our request of information on complaints for alleged torture, cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment, between January 2011 and March 2012, informed us that they received 13 complaints, of which, 11 were concluded and 2 are being processed, and regarding the concluded cases, 8 have been declared well founded and 3 unfounded. Regarding the information submitted by offices at national level, during the mentioned period we have been informed that 18 cases have concluded and 16 are being processed, informing that from the concluded cases, 8 have been declared well founded and 10 unfounded. Additionally the Ombudsman has informed us that during period 2009-2010 they have received 110 complaints 4. In previous years, the Ombudsman informed that during period 2003 to 2010, the number of registered complaints of cases of alleged torture and cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment is 640. From the 57 complaints registered in 2009, 39 were against the Peruvian National Police (PNP), 8 against municipal officials (Serenazgo), 6 against members of the Army (FFAA) and 5 against officials from the National Penitentiary Institute (INPE). On the other hand, regarding the 53 complaints received in 2010, 32 were against the PNP, 10 against INPE officials, 7 against municipal officials and 4 against the Army. At judicial level, the National Criminal Court of the Supreme Court of Justice, particularly court hearing cases of human rights violations, including torture crimes, reported that in the period September 2004 to December 2011, they sentenced a total of 138 defendants for torture crime, of which only 35 of them were convicted, and the 103 remaining defendants being acquitted. Also, as an update to March 2012, regarding the judicial proceedings for torture, 8 are under instruction (judicial investigation) and 3 in oral proceedings (part of the judicial process in which evidence is acted upon) 5. 2 Security Corps of local governments created to support citizenship security tasks, whose work is coordinated with the National Police. 3 The request Nº 053-2012- CNDDHH was submitted to the Coordinating Prosecutor of the National Criminal Superior Prosecutor and Supra Provincial Prosecutors. 4 This information was delivered by the Ombudsman through a letter Nº 016-2012-DP/ADHPD dated March 15th 2012. 5 This information was delivered to the CNDDHH by an officially written notice Nº 087-2012-MC-SPN dated March 13 th 2012. 2 These figures, given both by the competent court to see this kind of human rights violations, and by the state body supervising the actions of the state apparatus, we would note that there is a big problem of access to justice by victims of torture cases. It also notes the existence of a subfield of committing acts of torture. People who are victims of this crime do not report these facts because of several factors: fear of retaliation, mistrust and little or no credibility in the system (in most cases the acquittal of the accused), the distorted registration of this crime by actors in the system (police, prosecutors and even judges) who qualify the facts for abuse of authority or criminal injuries; which are among the most important factors. 2. Please indicate the incidence of torture denunciations in the military especially affecting those serving in the military and what are the measures taken to prevent and investigate such occurrences. We have not been able to generally access the figures that allow us to show the actual number of complaints of torture occurred in military facilities, especially of persons providing voluntary military service. As for the measures taken to prevent and investigate such occurrences, we should note, from the cases that the defense agencies of human rights members of the National Human Rights come to know and sponsor, on the contrary, there is a clear instruction of achieving impunity in such human rights violations. This can be verified in a serious case of sexual violence as torture committed against a minor (17), which provided voluntary military service in a military base in Cusco, which was subsequently doped and violated with such ferocity that suffered a torn anus (great rectal prolapse). Out of fear and shame he would not report it until the pain was unbearable and asked to be taken to the nearest hospital. His immediate superior ordered him to say that all physical injuries sustained were the result of excessive exercise. Although the case became publicly relevant in the city, the prosecutor who was initially in charge closed the investigation. This decision was challenged and overturned by a superior prosecutor. Currently, the investigation has been restarted. As we can see, there is a serious sign of concealment of such serious human rights violations, and above all there is also a lack of awareness on behalf of the legal operators in charge of investigating and prosecuting these serious crimes. 4. Please indicate whether the Public Ministry established a national register of all complaints received from people claiming to have been victims of torture, cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment. The Public Ministry has not implemented, a national register of all the complaints received, more like we reported in Part 1 of Article 2, we have requested the Public Ministry for information about torture nationally, and given the special competence with certain prosecutors but we have not received a response to our request.
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