NPM members also participated at events at home and abroad, where they presented their activities and previous experience. From 16 to 17 May 2017, the Deputy Ombudsman, Ivan Šelih, attended the first Forum of the National Preventive Mechanism, Preventing Torture: Kazakhstani and International Experience, which was held in the Kazakhstan capital of Astana. The event was hosted by the Kazakhstan National Ombudsman Office, with support from the Council of Europe and other international institutions. The event was organised in commemoration of the 10th anniversary of the entry into force of the Optional Protocol to the Convention against Torture and other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment, promoting the Protocol and encouraging the effectiveness of the existing NPM. In addition to the more than one hundred participants from Kazakhstan, the event was also attended by representatives of Central Asian institutions for the protection of human rights or NPM and a representative from the UK NPM. Deputy Ombudsman Šelih presented the current experience of the NPM in Slovenia, where its duties and powers are implemented by the Ombudsman together with selected non-governmental organisations. His presentation was particularly interesting to the Kazakhstani NPM representatives, as following Slovenia’s example, the Kazakhstani Ombudsman and representatives of non-governmental organisations or civil society participate in the implementation of the duties and powers of the NPM. The Deputy Ombudsman, Ivan Šelih, also presented the Slovenian NPM in Tunisia. At the invitation of the Council of Europe, he attended the International Colloquium of National Preventive Mechanisms – Repositories and Practices, in Hammamet, Tunisia held on 15 and 16 December 2017. The event was organised in the context of a joint project by the European Union and the Council of Europe entitled Towards Strengthened Democratic Governance in the Southern Mediterranean. It was attended by representatives of the Tunisian NPM and other authorities, representatives of other NPMs, and international mechanisms (e.g. SPT and NPM Obs). Numerous aspects of the work of the NPM were covered, including cooperation with civil society, the type and duration of visits, work methods, preparation for visits, preparation of recommendations and reports, review of individual complaints, and the preventive nature of visits. Discussions also focused on establishing dialogue with the competent authorities on the implementation of recommendations, cooperation with other NPMs, and establishing connections. Deputy Ombudsman Šelih presented the method of implementing the duties and powers of the NPM in Slovenia, especially the Ombudsman’s cooperation with the selected non-governmental organisations. His presentation also focused on the attention that the NPM in Slovenia places on vulnerable groups. He pointed out the Special report on the violation of human rights of people with mental disorders with regard to involuntary placement and involuntary treatment in secure departments of social care institutions, and the report on the conditions for vulnerable people in custody. Special attention was also paid to the institutional care of the elderly (especially people with dementia), people with mental health disorders, adolescents, and other people with special needs. We remain active in the South-Eastern Europe (SEE) NPM Network, whose purpose is, inter alia, to establish better cooperation and exchange of experience, and to implement numerous joint activities for more effective implementation of the duties and powers of the NPM in South-Eastern Europe which derive from the Optional Protocol . On 25 and 26 May 2017, we attended a meeting in Belgrade discussing the detention of people with mental health disorders. This is an especially vulnerable group, whose members can be detained in various closed institutions such as police stations, prisons, social care institutions and psychiatric hospitals, among others. The meeting was attended by all the members of the network and other representatives of the NPM or institutions for the protection of human rights, and international organisations. In his opening address, Deputy Ombudsman Šelih, the current Chair of the Network’s Legal Group, emphasised that people with mental disorders are socially marginalised and, as such, particularly vulnerable and helpless. Because of the difficulties that they face, they can scarcely manage to protect their own interests, or write an application or appeal. As such, they are particularly prone to various risks and discrimination, as well as to possible abuse during detention. All NPMs are accordingly bound to ensure that these people receive appropriate and dignified treatment. We also attended a SEE NPM Network meeting (5–6 July 2017) in Podgorica, focusing on the problems of ensuring healthcare in prisons and psychiatric institutions. At this meeting, the Deputy Ombudsman and Chair to the Legal Group of the SEE NPM Network, Ivan Šelih, emphasised in his opening address that the starting point when assessing the level of healthcare should be the principle that detained people should enjoy the same right to healthcare as other citizens. This is an unalienable right of every detained person. Only appropriate healthcare can ensure quality of life in a closed institution. Inadequate healthcare may lead to inhuman and degrading treatment. We must not overlook the fact that health services significantly contribute to the prevention of maltreatment by careful recording of the medical condition of detained people, providing appropriate medical assistance, reacting to possible worrying IMPLEMENTATION OF THE DUTIES AND POWERS OF THE NPM IN 2017 NATIONAL PREVENTIVE MECHANISM UNDER THE OPTIONAL PROTOCOL TO THE UN CONVENTION AGAINST TORTURE AND OTHER CRUEL, INHUMAN OR DEGRADING TREATMENT OR PUNISHMENT 15