Why draft visit reports?

Although drafting visit reports is not an obligation under the OPCAT, it is part of the general mandate of “making recommendations to the authorities with the aim of improving the treatment and the conditions of persons deprived of liberty” under article 19 of the OPCAT. Writing and publishing visit report is therefore a recommended practice, including by the UN Subcommittee on Prevention of Torture (SPT) in its Guidelines on national preventive mechanisms (CAT/OP/12/5, para 36). 

There are a number of reasons why NPMs draft reports in general. In addition to these general points, visit reports are an essential tool for some specific reasons: 

Visit reports are a core tool to enable the NPM to systematize the information gathered before and during visits to places of deprivation of liberty. They include analysis of a situation at a point in time, based on sound methodology and triangulation of information. Visit reports include analysis that underpins recommendations for change and which enable a comparison of what is happening in places of detention in light of international and national standards and laws. 

Visit reports serve as an important baseline for NPMs to be able to measure implementation of recommendations and changes over time.  

Visit reports follow a certain format and structure and should be harmonized across visits (even if they will likely evolve somewhat over time). By drafting visit reports that follow a similar structure, NPMs can ensure coherence of their methodology and work over time.