HF II Serbia - Strenghtening Human Rights treatment of detained persons

As a 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 (Horizontal Facility), the Council of Europe has implemented, as one of the Actions in Serbia, the Action Enhancing human rights protection for detained and sentenced persons - Phase II, in close partnership with the Ministry of Justice, Ministry of Internal Affairs, Ministry of Health, Ministry of Labour, Employment, Veteran and Social Affairs, NPM/Ombudsperson Office, Office for Human and Minority Rights and Serbian European Integration Office. The Action was also including a wide spectrum of other national stakeholders, as well as civil society organizations active in the field of protection and promotion of human rights.

The Action focused on the safeguards against ill-treatment of arrested and detained persons, the human rights protection of prisoners through improved policy and reintegration measures, as well as human rights protection of persons with mental disabilities detained in psychiatric or social care institutions.

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). These commitments are part of the Serbia's EU accession negotiations and accomplishment of goals defined in strategic documents and in particular Chapters 23 and 24.

The Action, which started on 24 May 2019 and was completed on 31 December 2022, had an overall budget of 900,000 euros.

Project documentation

Useful information

PROJECT NEWS

Back Enhancing the knowledge of psychiatric and social care staff on Council of Europe standards on prevention of ill-treatment

@ Council of Europe

Council of Europe and National Preventive Mechanism (NPM) Serbia launched a series of workshops for staff of psychiatric and social care institutions on the protection of human rights of persons. The first workshop for employees of the psychiatric clinic “Dr Laza Lazarevic” was held in Belgrade on 23rd May and a second workshop for social care staff from social care institutions in Stamnica and Veliki Popovac took place in Pozarevac on 24th May 2022.

The Serbian Ministry of Health and the Ministry of Labour, Employment, Veteran and Social Affairs are the beneficiaries and co-organisers of the workshops. The participants had the opportunity to get familiar with general and Council of Europe standards for the protection of human rights of persons in psychiatric and social care institutions. They also learnt about the alignment of national legislation with international and Council of Europe standards and CPT recommendations following the latest visit to Serbia in March 2021.

Representatives of the Serbian NPM provided a thorough overview of their mandate and operations, as well as NPM recommendations for psychiatric and social care institutions. Subsequently, this will lead to better understanding of the importance and purpose of NPM visits to these institutions.

Further six workshops will follow until October 2022. All workshops are organised in the framework of the Project “Enhancing Human Rights Protection for Detained and Sentenced Persons in Serbia”, co-funded by the European Union and the Council of Europe and implemented by the Council of Europe within the framework of “Horizontal Facility for Western Balkans and Turkey II”.

Belgrade, Serbia 30 May 2022