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Article 13 Access to Justice

161. The Civil Procedure Law 40 (CPL) prescribes that a party to the proceedings may be any natural or legal person. The party that has full legal capacity may take actions in the proceedings on its own.

Note #40
Official Gazette of RS No. 72/2011
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162. The Criminal Procedure Code 41 (CPC) prescribes that the defendant who is mute, deaf or unable to defend himself/herself successfully, must have a lawyer at the first hearing. CPC prescribes a special way of communication with such persons not only through an interpreter but also by asking questions and providing answers in writing.

Note #41
Official Gazette of RS No. 70/2001 and 68/2002 and Official Gazette of RS No. 58/2004, 85/2005, 115/2005, 85/2005, 49/2007, 20/2009, 72/2009 and 76/2010
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163. As for children and young people with disabilities, provisions of CPC and CPL as well as provisions of the Law on Juvenile Offenders and Criminal Protection of Minors 42 are implemented.

Note #42
Official Gazette of RS No. 85/2005
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Practice and statistics

164. On 5 September 2007, the Municipal Court in Šabac issued the first instance verdict in the case of discrimination based on disability.

165. According to records of Ministry of justice, 23 court proceedings were conducted or are still in progress in the period being reported, in relation to ciscrimination of persons with disabilities. The number of proceedings conducted under the jurisdiction of the Appellate Court in Belgrade is 7, in Novi Sad 15, and in Kragujevac 1. In this period, there were no complaints to the supervision of operation of courts related to discrimination of persons with disabilities in court proceedings.

166. After examining the criminal registry of the Supreme Court of Cassation, it was determined that there were no cases in the Court Criminal Division during the reporting period and, consequently, no proceedings related to cases of discrimination of persons with disabilities. After examination conducted in the Case Law Division of the Supreme Court of Cassation, it was determined that, in the period for which data were required, there was one case in the Civil Division related to discrimination of persons with disabilities. There were no complaints in the complaint proceedings in the stated period related to discrimination of persons with disabilities in court proceedings.

167. In 2010, the Judicial Academy organised 7 anti-discrimination seminars. Participants were judges and prosecutors from primary and higher courts and public prosecutors' offices. In 2010, the Judicial Academy developed an anti-discrimination training curriculum for judges and prosecutors, in accordance with LPD and international standards, in particular standards of the Council of Europe and European Court for Human Rights, adopted together with drafted working material as part of Academy's Training Program. Additionally, part of the curriculum was also included in the Initial Training Program conducted with the first generation of participants.

168. There are 9 full-time court interpreters for the sign language. Out of this number 5 work in Belgrade, 1 in Niš, 1 in Novi Pazar, and 1 in Kragujevac. The number of proceedings that involved a court interpreter either for sign language or for interpreting signs of blind persons, in the reporting period, is 47. There are 36 ramps and accesses to courts in Serbia. Out of this number, customised access for wheelchair users have all four Appellate Courts, 20 primary courts and 12 higher courts.

169. The building in which, in addition to the Supreme Court of Cassation, are also seats of the Commercial Appellate Court, Administrative Court and Appellate Court in Belgrade, has a separate entrance customised to PWDs' needs and standards, as well as customised access to the official entrance to enable the use of entrance by persons with disabilities.

Enforcement of Criminal Sanctions

170. The Law on the Enforcement of Criminal Sanctions 43 regulates the right of a convicted person with special needs to the accommodation adjusted to the level and type of his/her special needs (Article 66, paragraph 3).

Note #43
Official Gazette of RS No. 85/2005, 72/2009 and 31/2011
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171. According to the data of the Administration for Enforcement of Criminal Sanctions, there were no complaints in the reporting period related to PWD discrimination in facilities for execution of criminal sanctions.

172. For the purpose of providing appropriate accommodation for persons with disabilities, and in accordance with the Law on the Enforcement of Criminal Sanctions and the Rulebook on house rules in penal-correctional facilities and district prison, all institutions within the Administration for Enforcement of Criminal Sanctions take into account to ensure conditions for prison sentences customised to the needs of persons with disabilities.

173. Also, in accordance with available budget resources and architectural and spatial circumstances, these conditions have constantly been improved. For this purpose, the District Prison in Smederevo, District Prison in Negotin, District Prison in Zrenjanin and Penal Correctional Facility in Šabac have renovated rooms with accessories for persons with disabilities. In addition to this, toilet wheelchairs were purchased in the District Prison in Vranje. The District Prison in Belgrade is in the process of renovating special rooms with a customised bathroom and toilets, and new specialised hospital beds and orthopedic devices were ordered. Additionally, the District Prison in Kraljevo is renovating a separate toilet, and the toilet in the penal-correctional facility in Sombor is equipped with an aid for performing physiological needs of persons with disabilities.

174. In addition to efforts made to ensure convicted persons with disabilities accommodation conditions which suit their specific needs, they have the same health care as citizens at large. The health care service within a facility in which they are located provides complete medical records of the convicted person with a disability, which allows facility's physicians to enable them complete medical care that is customised to their specific needs. In addition to medical treatment, there are also psychiatrist and psychologist services available to persons with psycho-social disabilities, as well as special vocational therapy programs, different forms of workshops (depending on the nature of disability and estimated needs and capacities). Convicted persons to whom required medical care cannot be provided in the facility in which they are located, are referred for treatment to the Special Prison Hospital in Belgrade or to another highly specialised health care facility within the Ministry of Health. The Special Prison Hospital has a psychiatric ward, which has recently been renovated.

175. Persons with disabilities are included in the activities organised in the facility, which are, depending on their needs and capacities, customised to each particular case, including engagement in work, use of free time for recreation and art and other workshops. Aid and assistance in satisfying everyday needs of persons with physical disabilities in prisons are provided by competent services of the facility, particularly the health care service.

176. After release from serving a sentence, all persons, including persons with disabilities, are provided with assistance after serving a sentence by competent centers for social care according to persons' place of residence.

177. In the penal-correctional facility in Sremska Mitrovica was recorded that one convicted person with a disability referred to the Provincial Ombudsman complaining that he had difficulties in maintaining personal hygiene and performing other daily activities, which was the result of the fact that he was blind. Facility's staff made maximum efforts to enable the convicted person to more easily perform his daily activities, and security staff members were ordered to control, on a daily basis, whether he had taken food, the quality and quantity of food, and to report daily to their superiors on any irregularities which the convicted person could have faced due to the fact he was blind.

178. Furthermore, the District Prison in Novi Sad received an Ombudsman's recommendation to accommodate a convicted disabled person requiring a wheelchair to a separate bedroom on the ground floor, with a toilet and toilet facilities customised to his needs, with a door of appropriate width, and an access ramp for his undisturbed movement with the wheelchair inside the facility and for occasions of going outside of closed areas. With respect to this, the Administration was informed by the facility that the convicted person was accommodated in a room on the ground floor, with a toilet to which he may enter with the wheelchair, and that the procedure for providing financial means for other recommendations are under way.

179. A new penal-correctional facility in Padinska Skela is near completion of its construction, in which special attention has been paid to the conditions of accommodation of persons with physical disabilities, therefore, special cells have been adjusted to their needs, and this practice shall be continued in the renovation of existing and/or planning of construction of new facilities for the execution of criminal sanctions.

Treatment of persons with disabilities by police officers

180. Article 21 of the Constitution of the Republic of Serbia prohibits any discrimination, direct or indirect, on any grounds, particularly based on race, gender, nationality, social origin, birth, religion, political or other opinion, property status, culture, language, age and mental or physical disability.

Article 35 of the Law on Police states that an authorised officer while practicing police powers must act impartially, provide equal legal protection to everyone and act without discriminating persons on any grounds. In practicing police powers, an authorised officer must treat everyone humanely and with respect for their dignity, reputation and honour, and of other fundamental rights and freedoms.

In terms of application of force, the Law on Police 44 in its Article 89, paragraph 3 and Article 90, paragraph 4, limits the use of specific forms of use of force on persons with disabilities, therefore the use of a tactical baton and handcuffs is allowed only in case any of those persons directly endangers human lives.

In accordance with the Law on Police and Rulebook on the procedure for resolving complaints, the Internal Control Sector in the Ministry of Internal Affairs (MIA) resolved complaints of, inter alia, persons with disabilities pointing to unprofessional treatment by police officers. Statements from individual complaints were directly verified and some complaints were forwarded to the further competence of regional police departments. In direct verification of statements from complaints, police officers in the Internal Control Sector fully took into consideration health of complainants and they visited their apartments, i.e. houses, to conduct interviews and collect necessary information. Complainants are properly and timely notified on the results of conducted verifications. The procedure of filing complaints against police activities has been facilitated by distributing promotional materials like brochures, leaflets and forms with information for citizens on how to file a complaint, i.e. complaint against work of police officers. This material is also available on the web page of the Internal Control Sector, at MIA's website, therefore, citizens have an opportunity to submit their complaints via the internet.

Note #44
Official Gazette of RS No. 101/2005,63/09 – amended by the Constitution of Serbia and 92/11
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181. A project for permanent education of police officers about the use of deaf people's sign language was initiated in order to create conditions for communication of police officers with deaf people.

Independent state authorities

182. The Republic of Serbia points to the information specified in para. 21 to 22 of the Second Periodic Report on Implementation of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights CCPR/C/SRB/2.

183. It should be emphasised that the Ombudsman is authorised to control legality and regularity of prisons, and that it has the right to conduct unannounced visits and to access to all premises, the right to unsupervised conversation with all employees and all persons who are in prison or in custody, and the right to inspect all documents, regardless of a degree of confidentiality.

184. At the proposal of the Ministry for Human and Minority Rights, Public Administration and Local Self-Government, and according to the Law on the Amendments and Additions to the Law on Ratification of the Optional Protocol to the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment adopted on 28 July 2011, the role of an independent national mechanism for the prevention of torture was appointed to the Ombudsman. The stated Law binds the body to conduct visits, in order to prevent torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment, in any place under the competence or authority of the Republic of Serbia, where persons deprived of liberty are or may be located. The Ombudsman shall in its operation as an independent national mechanism for the prevention of torture cooperate with the Provincial Ombudsman and associations whose Statute envisages an objective of promotion and protection of human rights.

185. According to annual activity reports, there is an increased number of complaints submitted to the Ombudsman by persons with disabilities, which is expected, since the body has built a good reputation in time. In 2008, the Ombudsman acted on the basis of the total of 14 complaints of persons with disabilities, and in 2009, on the basis of 75 complaints of these persons. In 2009, the Ombudsman initiated, at its own initiative, proceedings in 3 more cases of violation of rights of persons with disabilities, and continued with 10 proceedings initiated in 2008. Most of the complaints concerned violation of rights in the field of social protection - 11, labour relations – 6, and discrimination – 6. In 25 cases there were no grounds for the complaints, in 12 cases they were rejected, in 9 cases withdrawn, and in 3 cases proceedings were suspended. The Ombudsman made a recommendation in only one case.

186. The Commissioner for the Protection of Equality, established on the basis of LPD, inter alia, receives and reviews complaints against violations of provisions of the Law, provides complainants with information on their rights, files claims to the court with consent of a discriminated person, monitors implementation and initiates an amendment to the law, as well as an amendment to other legal texts related to discrimination and human rights. The Law determines procedures before the Ombudsman, as well as the possibility of providing judicial protection. In previous work, the Commissioner for the Protection of Equality resolved 10 complaints based on disability.

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