The Chamber of Advocates has expressed concern about certain aspects of the issue of strip-searches of individuals taken in for questioning by the police.

In a statement, the Chamber said that the debate should focus on two significant aspects.

Firstly, there was the question of why and when would such invasions of privacy be justified under the law.

Secondly, one must consider the refusal by the Police to publish the guidelines given to members of the Force in respect of strip-searches.

The Chamber said the issue of searches generally is regulated by law. Both the Criminal Code and the Police Act grant to the Police the right to carry out searches.

Section 355 AF (1) of the Criminal Code provides: (1) A police officer may immediately search the person arrested: (a) if the police officer has reasonable grounds for believing that the arrested person may present a danger to himself or others; or (b) for anything which the arrested person might use to assist him to escape from custody; or (c) for anything which might be evidence related to an offence.

Similar wording is found in Section 65(2) of the Police Act which deals with the powers of the Custody Officer assigned to the arrested person.

The Custody Officer, in fact, is the person on whom the law places the obligation to ensure that the rights of an arrested person are respected.

The Chamber noted that the exercise of the powers of search rested on the individual discretion of the officer concerned on the basis of reasonable suspicion.

In these circumstances, the Chamber believed that the publication of guidelines would give appropriate publicity to the rights of all concerned and help lawyers in giving advice when faced with people who alleged that a search was carried out abusively.

"While appreciating the need for the Executive Police to have all the necessary legal mechanisms to investigate crime, the Chamber maintains that this ought not to take place at the expense of the individual's right to personal dignity, the Chamber of Advocates said."