A/HRC/13/31 Number of cases on which the Government has replied 0 Multiple replies on some cases Number of cases of possible clarification by Government (6month rule) N/A 0 General allegations Yes Government response Yes Prompt intervention letter N/A Government response N/A Working Group request for a visit N/A Government response N/A General allegations Summary of the allegations 157. Information was submitted by sources concerning obstacles reportedly encountered in the implementation of the Declaration. This information was transmitted to the Government after its eighty-seventh session. 158. According to the reports, the Government of Cyprus was involved in 2003 in a practice of renditions and secret detention. The role of the Government in this practice allegedly consisted of allowing the use of the airports of Cyprus to transport victims of rendition. Those planes stopped over in those airports during the process of transferring, taking, delivering, or returning detainees from the rendition. It is believed that the use of these planes, without the control and scrutiny of the Governments, was essential to facilitate and implement the rendition programme. In some cases, these planes were used to detain individuals in Europe, while in other cases victims of enforced disappearances were transported in and out of Europe. The Government allegedly allowed these planes to land on its territories without adopting any measure to prevent their use for secret detention and rendition. Reply from the Government 159. On 14 July 2009, a response was received from the Government regarding this general allegation. It stated that the Republic of Cyprus is a party to a number of international legal instruments which govern the transfer and extradition of sentenced persons and has signed a number of relevant bilateral agreements with third countries. For the period in question, the Government records that no suspected flights of secret renditions have used its airports. 160. Regarding the measures undertaken by the Government, the Council of Ministers on 31 August 2006 decided that for suspicious and irregular flights for which there was a request to use the airports in Cyprus, the authorities should request more information and may inspect the interior of such aircrafts. 161. Regarding the investigations undertaken by the Government, and following a request by the Secretary-General of the Council of Europe, an inquiry was launched by the Legal Service of the Republic with all police departments, districts and services concerning unacknowledged deprivation of liberty between 2002 and 2005. No such instance has been ascertained; the Government has never been informed of any illegal activities by foreign secret services on its national territory, nor would it tolerate them. Finally, there are no secret detention centres in its territory nor has the Government been asked by other countries to grant permission for such places of detention. GE.09-17704 37