By keeping 117 mental patients in prisons, when courts have decided that
they need to receive obligatory treatment, the heads of the respective
institutions are consuming the criminal act of illegally depriving
someone of his freedom.
This is the opinion of the Ombudsman, Igli Totozani, who warned that besides the recommendation for a quick resolution of the situation, they are thinking to make a recommendation for investigations.
“We know this situation. It is almost a criminal act, an illegal depriving of freedom for these people, because they are not convicts that need to be sent to a prison regime. These are people with health problems. The case may become even more serious, because we might recommend a criminal prosecution for directors who admit these people”, Totozani declared.
The same was declared a few days ago by the head of the Albanian Committee of Helsinki, Vjollca Mece, who declared that for every Prosecutor, judge or prison director that holds health patients in these premises there will be a report.
For the Ombudsman, the institution that he leads has been sending recommendations since 2001, but no solution has been found.
“This cannot be guaranteed by a center that works as a prison regime. This is absolutely impossible. They don’t have enough psychologists, which is alarming as well. We are talking about 100 people who are in these conditions, and this is an open violation of the human rights, that has been going on since 2001”. Totozani declared.
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