Shelter. 73 There was a 4-day gap between when the statement was finally derived
and when the victim came into the custody of the police. In a matter of T.I.P, such
as this one, where everything was time sensitive, this appears to the Commission
as an undue delay. It is further noted that the INTERPOL's National Central
Bureau ( CB) in Windhoek having established that the victim was a Kenyan
citizen and seeking to establish the facts relating to her alleged T.I.P, only reached
out to the INTERPOL in Nairobi on the 27th of October 2017. 74 This was 15 days
after the booking of the victim and 10 days after she gave her statement in which
she indicated the names of the people whom she accused for her T.I.P.
151.
The Commission has previously emphasised in its interpretation of Article
5 of the Charter that "Victims of torture and other ill-treatment should access and
obtain redress promptly." 75 Moreover, it recalls the findings of the Court which
wisely held that "Due diligence obliges the State concerned to act and react with
the dispatch required to ensure the effectiveness of available remedies." 76 While
the Commission commends the Police for visiting the Backpackers Guesthouse on
the very day that the victim appeared at the police station, that was the last act of
urgency in the conduct of that investigation. Subsequently, there was a lax
approach to the establishment of the facts that were necessary to resolve the facts
of the case, as required, to ensure redress for the victim. The Commission recalls
the guidance of the UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights that
"Investigations need to be commenced without any delay, taking place within
hours or, at the most, a few days after the suspicion of torture or ill-treatment has
arisen, and to be conducted expeditiously throughout." 77 From the facts presented,
the Commission finds an unjustifiable delay in the conduct of the investigation
that encumbered the victim's access to justice.
Effectiveness of investigation
152.
The Complainants allege that the Respondent
diligence by conducting an ineffective investigation.
investigation must be thorough and include several
steps,
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73 Respondent State's submissions Annex 8
74
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Respondent State Submission Annex 26 Correspondence from the NCB Windhoek t ~ ~ ~ ~.c,irobi
75 General Comment 4, para 26, page 8
76 Zongo para 152
77 Instanbul Protocol, para 193
36