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1. Damage incurred because of acts or omissions by a public official contrary to the rights
contained in these principles shall be compensated according to the applicable rules or liability
provided by domestic law.
2. Information required to be recorded under these principles shall be available in accordance
with procedures provided by domestic law for use in claiming compensation under the present
principle.
Principle 36
1. A detained person suspected of or charged with a criminal offence shall be presumed innocent
and shall be treated as such until proved guilty according to law in a public trial at which he has
had all the guarantees necessary for his defence.
2. The arrest or detention of such a person pending investigation and trial shall be carried out
only for the purposes of the administration of justice on grounds and under conditions and
procedures specified by law. The imposition of restrictions upon such a person which are not
strictly required for the purpose of the detention or to prevent hindrance to the process of
investigation or the administration of justice, or for the maintenance of security and good order
in the place of detention shall be forbidden.
Principle 37
A person detained on a criminal charge shall be brought before a judicial or other authority
provided by law promptly after his arrest. Such authority shall decide without delay upon the
lawfulness and necessity of detention. No person may be kept under detention pending
investigation or trial except upon the written order of such an authority. A detained person shall,
when brought before such an authority, have the right to make a statement on the treatment
received by him while in custody.
Principle 38
A person detained on a criminal charge shall be entitled to trial within a reasonable time or to
release pending trial.
Principle 39
Except in special cases provided for by law, a person detained on a criminal charge shall be
entitled, unless a judicial or other authority decides otherwise in the interest of the
administration of justice, to release pending trial subject to the conditions that may be imposed
in accordance with the law. Such authority shall keep the necessity of detention under review.
General clause
Nothing in this Body of Principles shall be construed as restricting or derogating from any right
defined in the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights.
1 The term "cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment" should be interpreted so as
to extend the widest possible protection against abuses, whether physical or mental, including
the holding of a detained or imprisoned person in conditions which deprive him, temporarily or
permanently. of the use of any of his natural senses, such as sight or hearing, or of his
awareness of place and the passing of time.