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4. The response of authorities on recommendations regarding the rights of persons with mental
disabilities which are detained was that they have accepted them. During 2013, in cooperative
dialogue on discussing recommendations and finding the modalities to their implementation,
representatives of Ministry of health and representatives of psychiatric hospitals stated that the
most of recommendations had been implemented. NPM findings are that although that authorities
stated that they have accepted all recommendations, psychiatric hospitals don’t act in accordance
with them. In addition, NPM shall pay special attention on the effects of the Law on the rights of
persons with mental disabilities (adopted in 2013).
5. The psychiatric hospital Sveti Vracevi submitted the information and requests to the Ministry
of Health according to the recommendations made by the NPM. So far we are not aware of the
outcome. In the following period, through its follow-up visit to the psychiatric hospital Sveti Vracevi
(planned in 2014) the Serbian NPM will monitor how many of these recommendations were
implemented and what changes were made.
6. In 2013, the NPM sent out a new report to the authorities stating the need for one more Asylum
Centre, because the two existing were not enough. Meanwhile, the authorities founded three
additional Asylum Centres – in Obrenovac, Tutin and Sjenica. Based on the overview of the overall
asylum system in Serbia, the NPM submitted a systemic recommendation to relevant administrative
authorities to rectify numerous irregularities mostly pertaining to unlawful operations. The
recommendation is available at www.npm.rs.
7. In several cases in which the Prosecutor’s Office was informed about the cases of ill-treatment the
prosecutor dropped the charges. The opinion of the Serbian NPM is that the Prosecutor’s Office
and other administrative authorities of the Republic of Serbia do not play their role in combating
impunity for torture. To further discuss this issue, the Serbian NPM organized a round table on
combating impunity for torture. The round table gathered all key stakeholders who adopted the
conclusions on the measures to advance the current status in the forthcoming period.
8. Most of deficiencies which NPM had find in prison for woman are related to the bad material
conditions. According to what the NPM was pointing to the prison for women, authorities are going
to carry out great reconstruction of that prison in 2014. In the following period NPM will monitor
the progress of these activities and what changes were made.
9. In 2013 follow-up visit was conducted to the Penal-Correctional Facility Sremska Mitrovica. In report
it is ascertained that 36 recommendations were implemented.
10. The meetings with visited institutions and competent ministries usually take place in our premises
and the conclusions we make are various, depending on the topics considered. The great number
of meetings were conducted with the police stations and the Ministry of Interior and some of the
conclusions were as follows: there are not enough funds in the Ministry budget for adaptations of
police premises and police stations and they make efforts to raise some funds from the municipal
budgets; the area of health care of persons deprived of liberty is not regulated in a proper manner
on the national level (there are different practices in the police stations); some provisions of the
Guidelines for Treatment of PDL in Police Custody, issued by the Minister of Interior, are not in line
with the international standards and national Law on the Police (e.g. obligatory presence of the
police officer to the health examination of the PDLs, the unnecessary use of handcuffs – the police
officers are obliged to use them every time they transport PDLs, regardless that person is dangerous
for him/herself or for the others or there is risk of escape).
The Serbian NPM recommended to the Ministry of Interior Affairs to amend the Guidelines for Treatment
of persons in Police Custody. Serbian Ombudsman/NPM submitted an opinion to the Ministry of Health
on the Draft Law on the Protection of People with Mental Disabilities in which the Ombudsman/NPM
pointed out flaws in the Draft Law.
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