Dhaka, Nov. 24 -- The UN Subcommittee on Prevention of Torture (SPT) on Monday welcomed the recent ratifications of Bangladesh and Colombia to the Optional Protocol to the Convention against Torture (OPCAT), bringing the total number of States Parties to 96.

The Subcommittee said it looks forward to supporting these two new States Parties in establishing their independent national preventive mechanisms (NPMs), the domestic anti-torture watchdogs that must be designated within one year of ratification.

"A defining feature of OPCAT is the work carried out at national level by NPMs, which continue to visit places of deprivation of liberty, including prisons and other detention facilities, even when the Subcommittee is unable to do so," sai...