A/HRC/37/78 28. The Independent Expert notes that the National Human Rights Commission, which also acts as the national torture prevention mechanism, has a strong mandate in terms of the protection and promotion of human rights, including the possibility of processing individual complaints. New commissioners were appointed and took up their functions in May 2017. The Independent Expert welcomes the fact that the Human Rights and Protection Division of MINUSMA provided technical support to the National Human Rights Commission through a capacity-building workshop held from 17 to 19 October 2017. The workshop was an opportunity to identify strategic priorities and led to the preparation of the Commission’s internal working documents, in particular its strategic plan, the rules governing the complaint mechanism and a guide on visits to places of detention and deprivation of liberty. 29. The Independent Expert was informed that, since the beginning of the counterterrorism military operations, some suspects have been transferred to Bamako without their cases being referred to the public prosecution service. As a consequence, some cases fall out of the service’s purview. Moreover, patrols under these military operations are carried out without the involvement of the gendarmerie’s military police units, which are responsible for criminal investigations. This situation leads to arbitrary arrest and unlawful detention. 30. The Independent Expert welcomes the progress made in the operationalization of the Truth, Justice and Reconciliation Commission. The Commission started its operational phase in January 2017 by collecting statements; it had gathered over 6,000 by November 2017. The matter of whether to extend the Commission’s mandate will have to be addressed so that it can proceed with the investigations and public hearings. While the Independent Expert acknowledges that a media campaign on the Commission’s mandate was undertaken as part of efforts to widen its reach through five regional offices, he encourages the Commission to put in place a more robust communications policy. He also encourages the Commission to take the appropriate steps to ensure the protection of victims and witnesses in the light of its mandate and of the activities that it will have to conduct. In addition, an effective computer management system should be set up to make it easier to categorize the violations committed by the various parties and prepare the final report. 31. The Secretary-General’s decision in October 2017 to set up an International Commission of Inquiry, as provided for in article 46 of the Agreement on Peace and Reconciliation in Mali, was a welcome development. The International Commission of Inquiry, which will have three members, will be tasked with investigating allegations of abuse and serious violations of international human rights law and international humanitarian law, including allegations of sexual violence during the conflict, committed across Mali between 1 January 2012 and the date of the establishment of the International Commission of Inquiry. It will submit a report one year after the effective start of its activities and will support the efforts of the Malian authorities to combat impunity. 32. The Independent Expert welcomes the commitment by the Ministry of Defence of Mali, following the allegations recorded by human rights organizations, to open an investigation into the serious abuse reportedly committed by the security forces during operations in central Mali. In addition, the Independent Expert learned that the Ministry of Defence has committed to taking several other important steps to prevent the security forces involved in the operations from further infringing human rights. These steps include: formally instructing troop commanders to hand over any person detained during military operations to the gendarmerie’s military police units for investigation purposes; formally instructing the gendarmerie’s military police units to produce a monthly report on any human rights violations; and pursuing human rights training and awareness-raising among the armed forces. 33. The Independent Expert notes that the prosecutor from the International Criminal Court made a two-day visit to Mali. During her stay from 17 to 19 October 2017, Fatou Bensouda met all the military chiefs to discuss the cases of violence against civilians recorded by human rights organizations. She reaffirmed that investigations into other offences, in particular sexual and other gender-based offences, were ongoing. GE.18-01553 7