By KUNA,
Paris : The Council of Europe Commissioner for Human Rights, Thomas Hammarberg will carry out a high-level visit across France starting Tuesday to assess a broad range of human rights issues, including prison conditions, precautionary detention, juvenile justice and migrants’ rights.
The Council of Europe said in a statement on Monday that the Commissioner will meet during his visit French Justice Minister Rachida Dati, Immigration Minister Brice Hortefeux and Human Rights Secretary of State Rama Yade. His trip to France is expected to include the cities of Paris, Lyon and Strasbourg where he will visit two prisons, a detention centre for migrants and a Roma settlement.
Hammarberg will be discussing the proposal to establish a Defender of Fundamental Rights, as well as the overall system of human rights protection in France and the need to reinforce independent police control mechanisms. The official will also follow up on his January visit to the detention centre for migrants in “Roissy” to assess measures undertaken to guarantee respect for the rights of asylum-seekers and irregular migrants.
The visit comes within the framework of activities carried out in accordance with the Commissioner’s mandate to assess the implementation of human rights commitments by all Council of Europe member states. The Commissioner for Human Rights is an independent, non-judicial institution within the Council of Europe, mandated to promote awareness of, and respect for, human rights in the organizations 47 member states.