A/HRC/4/33 page 18 • On 24 January 2006, he met with several Council of Europe institutions in Strasbourg. He gave a presentation to the Council of Europe Parliamentary Assembly Committee on Legal Affairs and Human Rights, and exchanged views on alleged secret detentions in Council of Europe member States. He also discussed issues related to the detention centre in Guantánamo Bay with the Secretary-General of the Council of Europe. • On 4 May 2006, he met with the European Parliament Temporary Committee on the alleged use of European countries by the Central Intelligence Agency of the United States of America for the transport and illegal detention of prisoners in Brussels. On the same day, he had consultations with the European Union Working Party on Human Rights and the European Parliament Subcommittee on Human Rights. • On 27 September 2006, he held meetings in Strasbourg with the Director and staff of the Office of the Council of Europe Commissioner for Human Rights on matters of mutual interest, including working methods and future areas of cooperation. 54. The substance of these activities has included support for country visits; an exchange of views on substantive issues; collaborative action on country situations; mutual advocacy of anti-torture measures; participation in expert workshops and training; and exchange of information on activities, experiences and working methods, as well as the coordination of future activities. 55. Although cooperation with European regional organizations such as the European Union, the Council of Europe and the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe has featured large, the Special Rapporteur has also sought to strengthen ties with the Organization of American States. From 9 to 14 June 2006, in Washington, DC, the Special Rapporteur held meetings with the Assistant Secretary for Political Affairs, the Secretary of the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights and judges of the Inter-American Court of Human Rights. In these meetings, issues of common concern, as well as strategies for collaboration between the two mechanisms, such as through the exchange of information and possible joint actions, were discussed. 56. Moreover, between 13 and 17 November 2006, for the first time, at the invitation of the African Union, the Special Rapporteur participated in the fortieth ordinary session of the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights in Banjul. He held consultations with the commissioners, with the Special Rapporteur on prisons and conditions of detention in Africa and the Follow-up Committee of the Robben Island Guidelines and the Commission secretariat, among others. He was invited to address the NGO Forum, which preceded the session of the Commission, and delivered a speech on “The fight against impunity in Africa: The responsibility to protect”, as well as the closing remarks of the Forum. During the Commission the Special Rapporteur also participated in a parallel expert consultation on “The challenges to the United Nations Human Rights Council”, organized by the International Federation of Human Rights Leagues. 57. The Special Rapporteur stated to the plenary of the Commission that the issue of torture in Africa and the plight of its victims deserved greater attention and prominence than