Latest news with #MassimilianoBagaglini
Scoop
26-06-2025
- Politics
- Scoop
Serbia Needs To Strengthen Effective Torture Prevention Measures, UN Torture Prevention Body Says
Geneva, 24 June 2025 Serbia must take further action to protect people deprived of their liberty from torture and ill-treatment and ensure its national preventive mechanism (NPM) plays an effective and crucial role, experts from the UN Subcommittee on Prevention of Torture (SPT) said after their first visit to the country. During the mission to Serbia from 15 to 21 June, the SPT delegation conducted unannounced visits to prisons, remand centres, police cells, as well as care homes for the elderly and children. 'While we acknowledge that steps are being taken to improve the rights of people deprived of their liberty, shortcomings must be addressed, specifically in the areas of criminal justice and social care,' said Massimiliano Bagaglini, head of the SPT delegation. 'The national preventive body has an important role to play in this process; therefore, it is vital that the mechanism is independent, well-resourced and effective.' The SPT delegation conducted private and confidential interviews with those detained or deprived of their liberty and officials working in various facilities. The delegation also met with Government officials, the Protector of Citizens (Ombudsperson) and its NPM unit, civil society representatives and UN agencies. The SPT delegation also carried out joint visits with the Serbian NPM to support their work. 'We observed that many individuals, including children, spend extended periods in pretrial detention under restrictive conditions, which may increase the risk of ill-treatment,' Bagaglini added. 'Institutions for people with disabilities were also a concern for the delegation, and more measures are needed to protect these people from ill-treatment.' The Subcommittee will submit a confidential report to the Government of Serbia with its observations and recommendations on preventing torture and ill-treatment of people deprived of their liberty. As with all other States, it encourages Serbia to make this report public following the visit. The SPT delegation was composed of the following members of the Subcommittee: Massimiliano Bagaglini, Head of Delegation (Italy), Vasiliki Artinopoulou (Greece), Kalliopi Kambanella (Cyprus), Nika Kvaratskhelia (Georgia), as well as two Human Rights Officers from the SPT Secretariat.
Scoop
13-06-2025
- Politics
- Scoop
UN Torture Prevention Body To Visit Serbia
Geneva,10 June 2025 - The UN Subcommittee on Prevention of Torture (SPT) will conduct its first visit to Serbia from 15 to 21 June to assess the measures taken by the country to protect people deprived of liberty from torture and ill-treatment. During the mission, the SPT delegation will visit prisons, police stations and other places where people are or may be deprived of their liberty. The delegation will meet with government officials, the Protector of Citizens (Ombudsman), representatives of civil society, and UN agencies. The delegation will also hold meetings and conduct joint visits with the national monitoring body, officially known as the National Preventive Mechanism (NPM). 'We will be there to see, to listen, and to examine the conditions in which prisoners, detainees, and all others deprived of their liberty are held. Our visit will focus on how safeguards against torture and ill-treatment are being implemented in practice, and how these protections can be further strengthened,' said Massimiliano Bagaglini, who is heading the SPT delegation. 'A comprehensive national torture prevention system requires regular visits by an independent and well-resourced national detention monitoring body, and we will therefore also be looking at the functioning of the NPM in Serbia,' he added. The SPT is mandated to visit all States Parties to the Optional Protocol to the Convention against Torture (OPCAT), which Serbia ratified in 2006. At the end of the visit, the SPT will present its confidential preliminary observations to the Government of Serbia. The SPT delegation will be composed of the following members of the Subcommittee: Massimiliano Bagaglini, Head of Delegation (Italy), Vasiliki Artinopoulou (Greece), Kalliopi Kambanella (Cyprus), Nika Kvaratskhelia (Georgia) as well as two Human Rights Officers from the SPT Secretariat.
