Sir, - The Irish Times has carried a Press Association report that the Council of Europe's Committee for the Prevention of Torture and Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (CPT) recently visited Garda stations and prisons around Ireland ("European body reviews prisons", September 16th). It is also stated that the results of such trips are never made public. However, under Article 11 of the Convention, most countries later request the publication of the report in question, together with a response from the national authorities. The report of the first visit to Ireland in 1993 was published by the Council of Europe in 1995 and was noted in the media at the time. This report and many others are available on the Internet.
A Council of Europe spokeswoman is quoted as saying that the information gathered by the CPT and its consultations with the Irish authorities are confidential. While this is true at the moment, it is still possible for the CPT's conclusions to be published at the request of the Irish Government. - Yours, etc., Darius Whelan,
Department of Law, University College Cork.