Status
UNCAT ratification date
12 March 1990
OPCAT ratification date
2 December 2005
NPM Type
New Specialised Institution
NPM Legal Framework
Law N° 4288 of 27 April 2011 (Spanish version)
Paraguay ratified the OPCAT in December 2005 and conducted wide consultations with national, regional and international actors interested in torture prevention. A consensus was reached at the national level to establish a new and specialised institution to perform the NPM mandate.
The law establishing the new NPM was adopted in April 2011 and the selecting committee was appointed in August 2012. The appointment of the six NPM members was finalised in December 2012 and the members started their operations in early 2013.
Furthermore, Paraguay received two visits from the UN Subcommittee on Prevention of Torture: one regular visit in March 2009 and a follow-up visit in September 2010. The visit reports and the State's replies have been made public.
The SPT member who is the SPT Focal Point for Paraguay is available here.
NPM Structure
The Mechanism is composed of:
- A National Commission on Prevention, which chairs and represents the Mechanism (composed of 9 Commissioners: 6 permanent members and 3 substitutes, elected by a Selecting Body)
- Escabinos (citizens who have expertise in specific fields and who are elected by the National Commission)
- A technical team
Annual reports
The NPM published its first annual report on the activities carried out during 2013 and submitted it to the Executive and Legislative powers as well as to civil society. Annual reports are available on the NPM's website.
Other Reports
Other reports, such as visits and thematic reports, may be available on the NPM’s website.