Review of visits to institutions and certain other activities of the npm in 2018 18. 16 April Ombudsman Vlasta Nussdorfer presented the Annual Report of the Human Rights 2018 Ombudsman of the Republic of Slovenia for 2017 and the Annual Report of the National Preventive Mechanism for 2017 to Dr Miro Cerar, Prime Minister of the Republic of Slovenia. 19. 17–18 April The international conference marking the 10th anniversary of the NPM work took 2018 place in Ljubljana. The conference, the NPM Impact Assessment, was organised by the Human Rights Ombudsman of the Republic of Slovenia and the Council of Europe. Ombudsman Vlasta Nussdorfer, Minister of Justice mag. Goran Klemenčič, and Markus Jaeger, Head of the Independent Human Rights Bodies Division of the Directorate General of Human Rights and Rule of Law at the Council of Europe, addressed the attendees in their introductory speeches. The Ombudsman highlighted the efforts of her Deputy, Ivan Šelih, also the Head of the NPM, and thanked all who have done a lot of preventive work in the past ten years within the NPM in order to prevent torture and other degrading treatment in institutions where people’s liberty is restricted. “Cooperation with ministries and other bodies is very good, but we would like their contributions to be more substantive, especially when dealing with systemic deficiencies,” emphasised Ivan Šelih at the conference. He stated that NPM officials were pleased with the results of the recommendations leading towards systemic changes and the preparation of strategic guidelines for work in individual fields. 20. 19 April At the Ministry of Education, Science and Sport, Deputy Ivan Šelih attended a 2018 meeting of the interministerial working group for monitoring the work of residential treatment institutions. 21. 19–20 April The Ombudsman hosted representatives of the Kazakhstan Human Rights 2018 Ombudsman, Dinara Ospanova and Gulmira Aukasheva, for an educational visit, where they learned about the work of individual Ombudsman’s units and the work of the NPM in Slovenia. 22. 23 April Deputy Ombudsman Ivan Šelih attended a meeting at the Ministry of Health on the 2018 elimination of dilemmas about competence over the realisation of a court decision to bring a person to an institution as per the Mental Health Act. 23. 25–28 April Deputy Ivan Šelih attended a conference, the second forum of his NPM, Prevention 2018 of Torture through Joint Efforts of National Human Rights Institutions and the NPM in Astana in Kazakhstan. The attendees were the NPM representatives from 16 Kazakh regions and ombudsmen from Central Asia and Russia. Supported by a number of other international organisations, the event was organised by the Kazakh Ombudsman, which in cooperation with NGOs performs duties and powers of the NPM. The work of the NPM in Slovenia was presented by Deputy Ivan Šelih, who is also an expert of the Council of Europe. Our model of implementing duties and powers of the NPM was particularly interesting for the participants since, similarly as in Kazakhstan, the Slovenian Ombudsman is cooperating with representatives of NGOs when performing tasks and powers of the NPM. As an expert of the Council of Europe, Šelih introduced good practices when enforcing effectiveness of NPM recommendations and their realisation. 24. 8 May 2018 Ombudsman Vlasta Nussdorfer, Deputy Ivan Šelih who is the Head of the NPM, Director of Hrastovec Social Care Institution, mag. Andreja Raduha, Director of Dom Lukavci Special Social Care Institution, Stanka Vozlič, President of Hrastovec Council, Miha Cigler and Ombudsman’s advisers mag. Jure Markič and Ana Polutnik, held a press conference at Hrastovec Social Care Institution (Lenart v Slovenskih goricah) where they spoke about the problems and conditions in social care institutions, particularly in Hrastovec, where persons sleep on folding beds or couches in rooms not intended for sleeping due to the lack of space. 25. 8 May 2018 Ombudsman Vlasta Nussdorfer and the Ombudsman’s advisers, mag. Jure Markič and Ana Polutnik, attended an event marking the 10th anniversary of Šentjur Spominčica Association in Šentjur Retirement Home. The Ombudsman addressed the attendees. 26. 18 May 2018 Ombudsman’s advisers, mag. Jure Markič and Ana Polutnik, spoke about NPM findings on the use of special protection measures at a panel in Portorož. The panel was organised by the Slovenian Psychiatric Association. IMPLEMENTATION OF THE DUTIES AND POWERS OF THE NPM IN 2018 NATIONAL PREVENTIVE MECHANISM UNDER THE OPTIONAL PROTOCOL TO THE UN CONVENTION AGAINST TORTURE AND OTHER CRUEL, INHUMAN OR DEGRADING TREATMENT OR PUNISHMENT 23