Between 25 and 27 May and from 29 to 31 May 2017, the Moldovan Human Rights Institute (IDOM) held two trainings on “Empowering General Police Inspectorate Staff to Prevent Torture and Reduce Ill-Treatment, Abuse and Discrimination against Persons Held in Police Custody”.

Trainers during the trainings:

Vanu Jereghi – Executive Director, IDOM;

Dumitru Russu – Coordinator, Monitoring and Reporting Program, IDOM;

Ion Caracuian – Chief of Section for Combating Torture, General Prosecutor’s Office;

Anatolie Munteanu – Vice Minister of Justice;

Oxana Gumennaia – Practicing Psychologist, member of the Council for the Prevention and Elimination of Discrimination and Equality Assurance and of the National Torture Prevention Mechanism;

Ana Racu – Member of the UN Committee Against Torture. 

The trainees were police inspectorate staff, responsible for the temporary detention isolation facilities from all the districts of Moldova.

    

     

 

On Thursday, 18 May 2017, a number of human rights defenders of the Caucasus came to visit the Republic of Moldova. The purpose of their visit was to familiarize the Caucasian civil society with the best human rights practices used in Moldova.

On this occasion, the Moldovan Human Rights Institute (IDOM) hosted a few hours event, organized by the Civil Rights Defenders (CRD) of Sweden.

Between 10 and 12 May and from 11 to 13 May 2017, the Moldovan Human Rights Institute (IDOM) held two trainings for the staff responsible for assisting and supervising the residents of social care houses. The trainings took place at the tourist complex Odiseu in the resort town of Vadul lui Vodă.

The topics of the training workshops were based on strengthening the capacities of the social care house staff of securing respect for human rights.

This activity was possible thanks to the financial support provided to IDOM by the Swedish International Development Agency (Sida).

 

 

In March inst., the Moldovan Human Rights Institute (IDOM) signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the Ministry of Labor, Social Protection, and Family to support and fulfill some of the objectives set out in Chapter IX, pt. C of the Activity Program of the Moldovan Government for 2016–2018, dedicated to the rights of persons with disabilities.

Under the said objectives, IDOM organized a round table today, 5 May 2017, in Chișinău, which was attended by the management of social care houses. The discussions focused on identifying the system problems and seeking solutions to them.

This activity was possible thanks to the financial support provided to IDOM by the Swedish International Development Agency (Sida).

Between 5 and 7 April 2017, IDOM organized a capacity-building activity. The event aimed at assessing and strengthening the IDOM team capacities. The main tasks were to systematize the activities of the Action Plan, Result Assessment Framework (RAF) and IDOM Development Strategy for 2016-2019.

 

On 11 July 2017, at the IPN News Agency, IDOM organized a press conference on the topic “Convictions in Cases of Ill-Treatment in Psychiatric Institutions”.

During this event, the IDOM experts presented three stories about the rights of persons with mental disabilities to the media.

You can watch this event here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mSaJcCD5krA

• http://www.ipn.md/ro/societate/85029
• http://www.ipn.md/ro/societate/85033
• https://deschide.md/ro/stiri/social/14635/Avoca%C8%9Bii-IDOM-consider%C4%83-bl%C3%A2nd%C4%83-pedeapsa-aplicat%C4%83-primarului-din-Ciute%C8%99ti.htm
• http://trm.md/ro/social/idom-persoanele-cu-deficiente-mintale-discriminate/
• http://realitatealive.md/live-conferin-a-de-presa-sus-inuta-de-institutul-pentru-drepturile-omului-din-moldova-idom-cu-tema-condamnari-pentru-rele-tratamente-in-institutiile-psihiatrice—60785.html?fbrefresh=1499702631
• https://point.md/ro/noutati/social/idom-abuzurile-si-a-relele-tratamente-in-institutiile-psihiatrice-mai-persista
• https://trm.md/ro/mesager/mesager-din-16-iulie-2017/

In the same TV Program, the IDOM Director Vanu Jereghi spoke about how thousands of persons with mental impairments had been deprived of their legal capacity i.e. they do not have any rights and cannot decide on their own even where to live or how to spend their pensions. Nor can they go to court, while their complaints filed with the police or prosecutor’s office are ignored, even if they claim serious abuse.

IDOM took over and managed a related case under its Litigation and Advocacy Program. The lawyer Valerian Mamaligă helped a young man with psychosocial disabilities to recover his legal capacity. This subject was covered in the program Mesager Stop Cadru of Moldova 1 TV station (https://www.facebook.com/MesagerStopCadru/videos/vb.119587368403171/420808601614378/?type=3&theater) and the same news item had been previously posted on the Facebook page of the UN Human Rights Office in Moldova (https://www.facebook.com/notes/oficiul-onu-pentru-drepturile-omului-moldova/decizie-istoric%C4%83-pentru-justi%C8%9Bia-din-moldova-un-t%C3%A2n%C4%83r-cu-dizabilit%C4%83%C8%9Bi-psihosocia/1895239770713810/)

This case has been taken over for litigation by IDOM (lawyer Andrei Lungu) to change the current judicial practice of depriving drug using parents of their parental rights.

http://www.constcourt.md/libview.php?l=ro&idc=7&id=1035&t=%2FMedia%2FNoutati%2FDecaderea-din-drepturi-parinteti-nu-poate-fi-aplicata-in-mod-automat-ci-doar-in-interesul-superior-al-copilului

During this training, the participants learned how to cover stories involving persons with mental disabilities and persons living with HIV using non-discriminatory language and about the importance of securing confidentiality as a safeguard against abuse. The presentations were made by the lawyers of the Litigation and Advocacy Program – Olesea Doronceanu, Andrei Lungu and Valerian Mămăligă, as well as by Dumitru Russu, coordinator of the Monitoring and Reporting Program.

https://investigatii.md/ro/oportunitati/training/training-pentru-jurnalisti-respectarea-libertatii-de-exprimare-si-neadmiterea-limbajului-discriminatoriu-in-mass-media

On 6 October 2016, the General Police Inspectorate (GPI) and the Moldovan Human Rights Institute (IDOM) set the basis for future cooperation.

The GPI Chief Alexandru Pînzari had a working meeting with the IDOM Executive Director Vanu Jereghi to sign a one-year agreement on improving the practical skills in the human rights area and on reaching some of the objectives set in the 2016-2020 Police Development Strategy (the Strategy).

According to the agreement, IDOM will support the GPI with implementing the Strategy, and especially the Police reform efforts under such objectives as “Develop the process of training and retraining of police officers”, “Promote the principles of transparency in decision-making”, and “Eliminate all forms of ill-treatment, abuse, and discrimination in Police work”, as specified in the Action Plan for implementing the Strategy.

The GPI will provide the necessary support and will consult IDOM in drafting and submitting for approval legislative and normative acts in the areas described in the agreement.

In this connection, the chiefs of the signing institutions expressed their conviction that all efforts would be made to reach the objectives encompassed in the agreement in view of preventing and eliminating all forms of ill-treatment.

To note that the signatories will act to secure the rights of persons in conflict with the law to treatment based on the principles of respect for privacy, prohibition of intimidation and discrimination, detention conditions that do not affect human dignity, and other principles established by the national and international law in this area.