51 shackled 24 hours a day, which amounts to cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment.106 During his visits to several prisons in China, former Special Rapporteur Manfred Nowak observed that those sentenced to death are handcuffed and shackled with leg irons, which in his view was an inhuman and degrading practice as it is an additional form of punishment.107 The CAT also observed that it has reports of organs being removed from people on death row without their giving their free and informed consent.108 149. Within United Nations, this remains a troubling picture to this day. In her opening address at the XXI Session of the Human Rights Council in 2012, the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights expressed concern over the recent executions of persons sentenced to the death penalty in China.109 150. Additionally, non-governmental organizations have approach to this issue. In that sense, both Human Rights Watch110 and Amnesty International111 indicate that the statistics on the application of the death penalty are classified as a State secret. Nevertheless, Human Rights Watch estimated that between five and eight thousand are executed every year.112 This would put China at the top of the list of countries that most use the death penalty.113 151. In the context of the universal periodic review on China done in 2009, the nongovernmental organizations reported that by classifying the statistics on the death penalty as a State secret, China prevents them from monitoring the true extent of the use of the death penalty.114 They 106 UN, Committee against Torture, Concluding observations, China. CAT/C/CHN/CO/4, December 12, 2008, paragraph 34, available at: http://daccess-dds-ny.un.org/doc/UNDOC/GEN/G08/457/10/PDF/G0845710.pdf?OpenElement 107 UN Special Rapporteur on torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment. Mission to China. E/CN.4/2006/6/Add.6, March 10, 2006, paragraph 68, available at: http://daccess-ddsny.un.org/doc/UNDOC/GEN/G06/117/50/PDF/G0611750.pdf?OpenElement 108 UN, Committee against Torture, Concluding observations, China. CAT/C/CHN/CO/4, December 12, 2008, paragraph 34, available at: http://daccess-dds-ny.un.org/doc/UNDOC/GEN/G08/457/10/PDF/G0845710.pdf?OpenElement 109 UN, Opening Statement by Ms. Navi Pillay, United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights to the Human Rights Council 21st Session, September 10, 20112, available at: http://www.ohchr.org/en/NewsEvents/Pages/DisplayNews.aspx?NewsID=12486&LangID=e 110 Human Rights Watch, Promises Unfulfilled: An assessment of China’s National Human Rights Action Plan, 2011, p. 24, available at: http://www.hrw.org/sites/default/files/reports/china0111webwcover.pdf 111 Amnesty International, Death Sentences and executions 2011, 2010, http://www.amnesty.org/en/library/asset/ACT50/001/2012/en/241a8301-05b4-41c0-bfd92fe72899cda4/act500012012en.pdf. 112 Human Rights Watch, World Report 2012, 2011 Events. http://www.hrw.org/sites/default/files/related_material/china_2012_0.pdf China, p. p. 8, available at: 3, available at: 113 Human Rights Watch, Promises Unfulfilled: An assembly of China’s National Human Rights Action Plan, 2011, p. 25, available at: http://www.hrw.org/sites/default/files/reports/china0111webwcover.pdf 114 UN, Office of the High Commission for Human Rights, Compilation prepared by the Office of the High Commission for Human Rights, in accordance with paragraph 15(b) of the annex to Human Rights Council Resolution 5/1. China. A/HRC/WG.6/4/CHN/2, January 6, 2009, paragraph 13, available at: http://lib.ohchr.org/HRBodies/UPR/Documents/Session4/CN/A_HRC_WG6_4_CHN_2_E.pdf