The Optional Protocol to the Convention against Torture (“OPCAT”) is a United Nations instrument that recognises that people deprived of their liberty are particularly vulnerable to torture and ill-treatment. At the heart of OPCAT is the idea that regular, independent visits to places of detention provide a proactive safeguard against human rights abuses in places that, by their very nature, fall outside the public gaze.

The New Zealand National Preventive Mechanism (NPM) is comprised of the Office of the Ombudsman, the Office of the Children’s Commissioner, the Independent Police Conduct Authority and the Inspector of Service Penal Establishments. Over the last 12 years they have developed a robust system to examine, and where appropriate make recommendations to improve, the care and treatment of people deprived of their liberty under New Zealand law.

This report outlines the activities of the NPMs during the reporting period 1 July 2018 – 30 June 2019.