Dili, 27 February 2026– The Provedoria dos Direitos Humanos e Justiça (PDHJ) has formally submitted a recommendation to the National Parliament urging the ratification of the Optional Protocol to the Convention against Torture (OPCAT).
In an official letter dated February 27, 2026, Ombudsman Virgílio da Silva Guterres “Lamukan” called on parliamentary leaders to accelerate the ratification process, emphasizing that while Timor-Leste ratified the UN Convention against Torture in 2003, the Optional Protocol which establishes a preventive monitoring system remains unratified.
“The ratification of the OPCAT is crucial to complement our legal framework on universally accepted human rights,” Guterres wrote.
Unlike the Convention against Torture, which focuses on punishing acts of torture after they occur, the OPCAT establishes a proactive prevention system requiring independent bodies to conduct regular visits to prisons, police cells, psychiatric facilities, and other places where people are deprived of their liberty.
The PDHJ’s recommendation draws on Timor-Leste’s own history, referencing the Commission for Reception, Truth and Reconciliation (CAVR) findings that documented widespread suffering between 1974 and 1999, including arbitrary detention, torture and inhuman treatment. The CAVR had previously recommended external monitoring of all prisons a measure that aligns directly with the OPCAT framework.
“The experiences felt throughout this long journey of the liberation process should be brilliant lessons for our people so that bad experiences are not repeated in this independent era,” the document states.
The PDHJ noted that ratification would not impose significant financial burdens, as the institution already conducts regular inspections of detention facilities under its existing mandate and could potentially serve as the required National Preventive Mechanism.
Timor-Leste signed the protocol in 2005, but parliamentary ratification has never been finalized. The National Parliament now holds the responsibility to move forward with the process.
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