The topics of those three meeting sessions were the following: 10 years after the entry into force of the OPCAT in OSCE region, achievements and challenges related to the NPM operation; Preventive monitoring: positive experiences and challenges; Achievement of results: efficient implementation of recommendations.
The event was attended by Mykola Gnatovskyy, President the European Committee for the Prevention of Torture (CPT), Malcom Evans, Chair of the UN Subcommittee on Prevention of Torture (SPT), Ombudspersons from Armenia, Kazakhstan, Ukraine, representatives of ombudspersons’ institutions from the OSCE region and of the APT.
During the meeting, the Ombudsperson spoke about the challenges, which Moldova is currently facing, as regards the establishment of NPM in a new formula, according to the provisions of the Law No 52. Mihail Cotorobai specified that the new law does not provide clearly what is the NPM: the Ombudsperson or the Council for Prevention of Torture. In addition, the chapter on NPM has a number of vaguenesses which, even before the establishment of the Council for Prevention of Torture, raise big questions as regards the operation of this structure.
In another train of thoughts, the Ombudsperson referred to the Ombudsperson's Office experience of monitoring psychiatric institutions. In this context, Mihail Cotorobai recalled that on 10 October – the World Mental Health Day, he made public his initiative on amending the Electoral Code in order to grand the right to vote to persons without legal capacity, as well as approval of a legislative package, which could ensure the implementation of the Article 12 from the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.
The Ombudsperson also delivered several speeches during the sessions addressing the issue of compliance with the detention standards. Mihail Cotorobai mentioned the role of the Moldovan NPM and of the Ombudsperson in promoting in-field international standards, and also stated that due to the lack of funds, the detention places from our country cannot be neither fully reconstructed nor built new penitentiaries. Because of this, the conditions of detention remain at the minimum acceptable level, in order not to be appreciated as inhuman and degrading.