- 20 23. In the Committee’s view, it is essential to promote a police culture where it is regarded as unprofessional to resort to ill-treatment. There must be a clear understanding that culpability for illtreatment extends beyond the actual perpetrators to anyone who knows, or should know, that illtreatment is occurring/has occurred and fails to act to prevent or report it. The CPT considers that proper conduct by members of the police vis-à-vis detained persons should be fostered, in particular by doing more to encourage police officers to prevent colleagues from ill-treating detained persons and to report, through appropriate channels, all cases of violence by colleagues. This implies the development of a clear reporting line to a distinct authority outside of the police unit concerned as well as a legal framework for the protection of individuals who disclose information on ill-treatment and other malpractice. The CPT recommends that the Greek authorities actively promote a culture change within the ranks of the Hellenic Police and adopt “whistle-blower” protective measures. Moreover, in order to back up any message of zero-tolerance and to reinforce the training, effective investigations into allegations of ill-treatment must be undertaken to demonstrate that criminal acts by the police will be punished and to counter the current culture of impunity that pervades parts of the police force (see section 3 below). 3. Investigations into allegations of ill-treatment 24. For many years, the CPT has been highlighting fundamental flaws in the system of investigations into allegations of ill-treatment, such as the lack of promptness and expeditiousness in carrying out investigations and the passive role of prosecutorial or judicial authorities as regards starting an investigation into allegations of ill-treatment.13 The information gathered in the course of the 2015 visit once more indicates that the current system is characterised by systemic failings by the police and judicial authorities to conduct prompt, thorough, independent and impartial investigations, aimed at bringing the perpetrators of ill-treatment to justice. The existence of effective procedures for examining complaints and other relevant information regarding ill-treatment by the police is an important safeguard against ill-treatment of persons deprived of their liberty. The credibility of the prohibition of torture and other forms of illtreatment is undermined each time officials responsible for such offences are not held to account for their actions. If the emergence of information indicative of ill-treatment is not followed by a prompt and effective response, those minded to ill-treat persons deprived of their liberty will quickly come to believe – and with very good reasons – that they can do so with impunity. To avoid any perception of impunity, it is crucial that effective action is taken whenever any information indicative of possible ill-treatment comes to light. In this regard, it is well established through the case-law of the European Court of Human Rights that, whenever a person was injured while in the hands of public officials, there is a strong presumption that the person concerned was ill-treated and the authorities’ duty is to provide a satisfactory and convincing explanation of how the injuries were caused, failing which a clear issue arises under Article 3 of the European Convention on Human Rights. 13 See the reports on the CPT’s 2009, 2011 and 2013 visits: CPT/Inf (2010) 33, paragraphs 22 to 31, CPT/Inf (2012) 1, paragraphs 85 to 90, and CPT/Inf (2014) 26, paragraphs 20-23.