HF II North Macedonia - Enhancing penitentiary system External Oversight Mechanism

As part of the co-operation framework co-funded by the European Union and the Council of Europe, known as the Horizontal Facility for the Western Balkans and Turkey, phase II (Horizontal Facility II), the Council of Europe implemented the Action “Enhancing the capacities of the penitentiary system and the External Oversight Mechanism in North Macedonia”, in close cooperation and partnership with the Ministry of Justice (Directorate for Execution of Sanctions), Ministry of Health, Ministry of Internal Affairs, the Public Prosecutor’s Office and the Ombudsman’s Office. The Action also involved a wide group of other national stakeholders, including prominent civil society organisations active in the area of protection and promotion of human rights.

The main aim of the Action was to contribute to a safer and more humane society that respects and protects the rights of detained and sentenced persons in line with the Council of Europe standards in the area of penitentiary and law enforcement.

The key Conventions for this Action were the European Convention for the Prevention of Torture and Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment and the European Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms (ECHR), as well as the recommendations of the European Committee for the Prevention of Torture (CPT) and the judgments of the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR).

The duration of the project was set at 36 months and it was completed by 31 December 2022, with an overall budget of 1,050,000 Euros.

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Useful information

PROJECT NEWS

Back National Penitentiary Strategy of North Macedonia discussed with stakeholders

A Round Table held on 5 February 2021 in Skopje brought together 33 representatives from the Directorate for the Execution of Sanctions (DES) of the Ministry of Justice, the Ministry of Health, the Ministry of Labour and Social Policy, the Ministry of Education and Science, Ombudsman’s Office, the National Coordinator for countering violent extremism, as well as the civil society and donors community, to discuss the Draft National Strategy for the Development of the Penitentiary System in North Macedonia (2021-25).

For over a year, the working group tasked with the development of the strategy has been focusing on shaping the joint vision and mission, setting the strategy’s objectives in twelve areas and designing the actions to systemically address the challenges of the penitentiary system.

The event was opened by the representatives of the EU Delegation to the Republic of North Macedonia and the Criminal Law Co-operation Unit of the Council of Europe, as well as the DES Director, who provided the participants with and overview of the structures and the main elements of the document. The input received during the constructive and topical discussion will be reflected in the final version of the Strategy, which in the upcoming weeks will be presented to the Government for adoption.

This activity was organised as a hybrid event within the scope of the Action “Enhancing the capacities of the penitentiary system and the external oversight mechanism in North Macedonia”, that is co-funded by the European Union and the Council of Europe within the “Horizontal Facility for Western Balkans and Turkey 2019-2022” and implemented by the Council of Europe.

05 February 2021