Republic of Moldova

INTRODUCTION OF “TORTURE PREVENTION AND COMBATING” CHAPTER FROM NATIONAL ACTION PLAN IN THE FIELD OF HUMAN RIGHTS

28 April 2010, Chisinau-- On April 28, the project „Torture Prevention”, financed by the European Union and co-financed and implemented by the United Nations Development Programme, introduced the basic study „Situation in R. Moldova on combating torture and other cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment forms”. Basing on the study, a group of experts elaborated a new Chapter for the National Action Plan in the field of Human Rights, referring to torture prevention and fighting, and submitted it to R. Moldova’s authorities for approval.

The study reveals a deep analysis of the situation existent in Republic of Moldova in the field of torture prevention and combating, and introduces a series of concrete recommendations for preventing the phenomenon and protecting victims who were subject to torture. The authors of the study say that Republic of Moldova, as the other countries that subscribed to international conventions banning the use of torture, must take measures to prevent and combat the use of torture, punish the offenders and compensate the victims.

According to the study, the detention conditions at police stations do not meet the national and international legislative requirements. Numerous reliable sources and observation actors point at the great number of complaints about the use of force and maltreatment in certain police remand centers.

In this context, measures to suppress the use of torture and other maltreatments within remand centers are to be taken, such as: detention of persons (both in criminal and contravention cases) for a period exceeding 48 hours in remand centers subordinated to the Ministry of Justice; supervision of police remand centers with video cameras; maintenance of a strict record of persons under police custody; ensuring of detainees’ basic rights, as well as provision of adequate detention conditions.

At the same time, the situation regarding maltreatment and attempts to hush up cases of torture and inhuman, cruel and degrading treatment of prisoners, as well as inhuman detention conditions in quarantine cells, remains worrisome. In this respect, it is recommended to take actions that will help root out this phenomenon by ensuring the observance of detainees’ rights, including creating appropriate detention conditions in the quarantine and lock-up cells and reviewing the mechanism for challenging disciplinary penalties by prisoners. 

The experts say the situation in psychiatric institutions is alarming. Many persons are kept there without a court decision and are subject to inadmissible treatment. In this context, the authors of the study recommend creating a patient defense service, reviewing the status of the hospitalized persons, training the personnel and monitoring how the patients’ rights are observed.

In the view of improving the operation of National Torture Prevention Mechanism and ombudsman institution, the experts believe it is imperative to clearly determine such institutions’ competencies, endow them with necessary resources and eliminate all operational impediments, including by raising the awareness of stakeholders and decision factors hindering the activity of above institutions. Simultaneously, in order to make the activity of R. Moldova’s Center for Human Rights more effective, it is necessary to rank according to priority the categories of intervention it accomplishes and reinforce the legal empowerment of prisoners.

The authors of the study concluded that, up till present, domestic investigations conducted by the Ministry of Domestic Affairs did not comply with torture investigation principles and good practice. The majority of criminal investigations in torture cases (before and after April 2009 events) do not meet the minimal requirements, resulting in a long-term lawsuit and ending up with an unfounded court decision, fact ascertained from various sources. According to international good practice, the criminal and torture acts’ investigation must be efficient, multi-sided and complete, quick/rapid and transparent.

At present, a low number of cases concerning the use of torture and rehabilitation of the persons subject to torture are examined in courts. This is due to the fact that the judiciary is not independent, there is insufficient training in torture-related matters, the ECHR decisions over article 3 are not implemented.

Following the statements on condition of torture and other inhuman, cruel and degrading forms of treatment, the experts drafted a series of recommendations and actions, which were included in a new chapter regarding torture prevention and combating. The new chapter is part of the National Action Plan in the field of Human Rights and has been presented to the authorities for approval. “We are convinced that other stipulations included in the draft Plan for 2010-2013 will help prevent and combat torture and there will be no need to submit special proposals in this respect. Both the employees of detention institutions and other related professional groups must be trained so that they better understand the mechanism for preventing and combating torture and other inhuman treatments,” said Victor Zaharia, the leader of the team of experts.

For contact: Mircea Eşanu, UNDP Moldova Project Manager, tel. 245079, e-mail: mircea.esanu@undp.org  or Irina Lazur, Communication and Information Coordinator, tel. 232523, e-mail: irina.lazur@undp.org