CCPR/C/86/992/2001 page 4 victim of violations by Algeria of articles 2, paragraph 3; 6, paragraph 1; 9, paragraphs 1, 3 and 4; 10, paragraph 1; and 14, paragraph 3, of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (the “Covenant”). The author is represented by counsel. The Covenant and the Optional Protocol to the Covenant entered into force for the State party on 12 December 1989. The facts as presented by the author 2.1 Mr. Saker, a teacher, was arrested without a warrant on 29 May 1994 at 18.45 at his home, as part of a police operation carried out by agents of the Wilaya of Constantine (administrative division of the town of Constantine). At the time of his arrest, Mr. Saker was a member of the Front Islamiste de Salut (Islamic Salvation Front), a prohibited political party for which he had been elected in the annulled legislative elections of 1991. 2.2 In July 1994 the author wrote to the Director of Public Prosecutions (Procureur de la République) and requested to be informed about the reasons for her husband’s arrest and continued detention. At the time of his arrest, the longest pretrial detention authorized by Algerian law was 12 days, for persons suspected of the most serious offences provided for in the Algerian criminal code, namely terrorist or subversive acts.1 Further, the law required that the police officer responsible for the questioning of the suspect allow him contact with his family.2 2.3 The author did not receive a satisfactory reply from the Director of Public Prosecutions and, on 29 October 1994, wrote to the President of the Republic, the Minister of Justice, the Minister of the Interior, the Security Officer of the President of the Republic (Délégué à la Sécurité auprès du Président de la République), and the Head of Military Area No. 5. 2.4 As none of these persons replied, the author lodged a complaint with the Director of Public Prosecutions of the Tribunal of Constantine on 20 January 1996 against the security services of Constantine for the arbitrary arrest and detention of Mr. Saker. She requested that the persons responsible be brought to justice, pursuant to article 113, paragraph 2, of the Criminal Procedure Code. By letter of 25 January 1996, the author alerted the Ombudsman of the Republic (Médiateur de la République). She also requested information about her husband from the Director General of National Security on 28 January 1996. 2.5 As none of these bodies replied, the author wrote to the President of the National Observatory for Human Rights (Observatoire National des Droits de l’Homme) on 27 September 1996 to inform him of the difficulties which she was facing in obtaining information about her husband. She also requested legal aid and assistance. 2.6 On 27 February 1997 the author received a letter from the judicial Police section of the Security of Constantine (Service de la Police judiciaire de la Sûreté de la Wilaya de Constantine), forwarding a copy of Decision No. 16536/96 of the Director of Public Prosecutions of the Tribunal of Constantine dated 4 September 1996. This decision relates to the complaint which the author had lodged a year earlier; it informed her that her husband was wanted and had been arrested by the judicial police section of the Security of Constantine, then transferred to the Territorial Centre for Research and Investigation (Centre Territorial de Recherches et d’Investigation, the “Territorial Centre”) of Military Area No. 5 on 3 July 1994, as evidenced by a receipt of handover No. 848 of 10 July 1994. The author highlights that this