OSCE Mission in Kosovo trains officials on maintaining humane conditions in prisons, holding cells

PRISHTINE/PRISTINA, 14 May 2008 - A training course on protecting human rights in situations involving deprivation of liberty, organized by the OSCE Mission and the Council of Europe for government officials, will begin Thursday.

"It is important for officials to understand their obligations to protect the human rights of persons deprived of their liberty for legal reasons, for example during detention, incarceration or hospitalization," said Ambassador Tim Guldimann, the Head of the OSCE Mission.

The two-day seminar will be delivered by experts from the Council of Europe and will focus on international human rights standards on the treatment of persons deprived of liberty, including juveniles as a vulnerable group. These standards include the regulation of conditions in prisons, detention centres, holding cells in police stations, special cells in hospitals and other special care centres.

Participants will include senior officials from the Kosovo Ministries of Justice, Internal Affairs, Health, Labour and Social Welfare, as well as from the Kosovo Police Service and the Ombudsperson Institution in Kosovo. They will discuss implementing the recommendations of the Committee on the European Convention for the Prevention of Torture and Inhumane or Degrading Treatment or Punishment.

"The OSCE is pleased by the efforts of the Human Rights Units in the Ministries of Justice and Internal Affairs for initiating this seminar," said Guldimann.

The event is being held at the Kosovo Centre for Public Safety Education and Development in Vushtrri/Vucitrn. It is the first in a series of seminars co-sponsored by the OSCE, the Council of Europe, the Office of the Prime Minister and the Human Rights Units of Kosovo ministries to improve the government's human rights compliance.