In
accordance with the information disseminated in the press, a 31-year-old man
detained in the "Armavir" penitentiary institution of the Ministry of
Internal Affairs of RA, committed suicide by hanging himself from the bar. In
response to the incident, a discussion procedure was started on the initiative
of the Human Rights Defender Anahit Manasyan.
Appropriate
letters will be addressed to the General Prosecutor's Office of the Republic of
Armenia, the Ministry of Health, as well as the Ministry of Justice with the
request to make the circumstances of the mentioned case a subject of a detailed
examination.
The
Human Rights Defender especially emphasizes.
•
professional guidelines are needed, in order to prevent the suicides of persons
deprived of liberty and provide them with effective psychological assistance,
and if necessary, deep psychological assistance to the above-mentioned persons.
• the
practice of using self-harm and suicide risk assessment tools is in serious
need of improvement. Regular training of prison staff on self-harm and suicide
screening and risk assessment tools has to be carried out.
"It
is of utmost importance to implement a proper assessment of the suicide risk of
the detained persons, as well as make sure that the means of depriving life are
not available to those persons who are at risk of self-harm or suicide, and to
provide trainings for the personnel of the detention institutions on suicide
and self-harm prevention.," stated the Human Rights Defender.
In
relation to the mental health disorders of persons deprived of liberty, it is
proposed to make the necessity of involuntary treatment towards the latter, in
case of refusal of inpatient treatment by them, with the observation of the
requirements of the legislation.
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