KIGALI, Oct. 23 (Xinhua) -- The Rwandan government on Monday called on the UN Subcommittee on Prevention of Torture (SPT) to make public the impediments that the committee claims compromised its mission to Rwanda.
The treaty body in the UN human rights system abruptly terminated the mission and turned to the media before discussion with the Rwandan government, said the Rwandan ministry of justice in a statement.
The committee violated its own guidelines as well as the pre-agreed schedule of the visit, said the ministry.
SPT said last Friday it had suspended its visit to Rwanda due to a series of obstructions imposed by authorities.
"Rwanda considers the termination an act of bad faith," said Johnston Busingye, Minister of Justice and Attorney General, in the statement.
According to the minister, the committee conducted field visits for five days to institutions including prisons, police stations, transit centers, and a psychiatric hospital, interviewing staff, inmates, and patients. Any technical issues that arose during field visits were immediately resolved, he said.
Rwanda voluntarily ratified the Optional Protocol to the Convention against Torture, part of the minority of states-parties to have done so, read the statement. The SPT exists to reinforce national institutions, not replace them, it added.
