other persons deprived of their liberty, as well as those placed in psychiatric institutions, nursing homes for older persons and children’s homes, in order to protect them from torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment. To ensure the effective implementation of the functions of the National Preventive Mechanism, the Special Preventive Group is staffed with specialists from different fields. The group includes 10 specialists with expertise in monitoring penitentiary establishments, places of detention and restriction of liberty, 4 doctors, 3 psychiatrists, 3 psychologists, 3 social workers, 2 military unit monitoring specialists; in the direction of children’s homes - 1 nutritionist, 4 social workers, 4 psychologists; in the direction of institutions for persons with disabilities - 2 psychologists, 1 social worker, 2 special teachers, 1 specialist in access to physical environment for persons with disabilities. In the reporting period, the National Preventive Mechanism paid 88 visits to places of detention and restriction of liberty. In addition, the Special Preventive Group, within the framework of the monitoring of the territorial bodies of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, held 4 meetings with local lawyers working in the field of criminal justice and representatives of non-governmental organizations in the regions of Georgia. The purpose of the meetings was to obtain additional information about the protection of detainees from torture and other ill-treatment. At the same time, representatives of the Public Defender's Office briefed the persons involved in the meetings on the Public Defender's mandate and field of activity. In the reporting period, the National Preventive Mechanism published one special report and drew up 6 visit reports, 4 of which were published in 2019. In addition, the report on the international conference – Measuring and Enhancing the Impact of National Preventive Mechanisms - was prepared. A study prepared by independent international experts Richard Carver and Lisa Handley, which assesses the results of ten years of work of the National Preventive Mechanism in the direction of prevention torture in Georgia, was published with the support of the Open Society Foundation. In 2019, the National Preventive Mechanism drew up 95 recommendations aimed at identifying and responding to the risk factors of torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment. In addition, it assessed the implementation of 74 recommendations made to the penitentiary system, Ministry of Internal Affairs and psychiatric institutions in 2018. A number of dialogues were conducted with civil society, international organizations, state agencies and other stakeholders. The National Preventive Mechanism continued to inform public and raise awareness of human rights situation at places of restriction and deprivation of liberty. Information was provided to public through publication of visit reports, special and annual reports, organization of various events and meetings, as well as through the media. 5