Justice For All – National roundtable event

On 11 July, at the Seimas Ombudsmen’s Office, decision-makers, specialists from the justice system and NGOs representing persons with disabilities gathered to discuss the situation of defendants with intellectual and/or psychosocial disabilities in Lithuania and to look for ways to strengthen protection of their rights.

In the welcoming speech, Head of the Seimas Ombudsmen’s Office noted that  suspects with intellectual and/or psychosocial disabilities are one of the most vulnerable groups in criminal proceedings. Intellectual and/or psychosocial disabilities can be overlooked or misunderstood in time, which can deny the suspect or accused person’s ability to participate effectively in the proceedings and the right to a fair trial itself.

The discussion also pointed out that psychosocial disabilities are still strongly stigmatised in society and perceived as significantly increasing a person’s dangerousness, which may lead to excessive restrictions being imposed on suspects with such disabilities, even though there is often no direct link between a person’s mental health and the offence committed. According to the Head of the Seimas Ombudsmen’s Office, in order to ensure adequate protection of the rights of suspects or accused persons with psychosocial or intellectual disabilities in the process of implementation of criminal justice, it is important to strengthen the competences of investigators, public prosecutors, and judges, as inadequate communication, the lack of necessary assistance, and prejudiced attitudes can lead to violations of the right to a fair trial and other human rights.

The event is part of the EU funded project “JUSTICE FOR ALL: Enhancing the Rights of Defendants and Detainees with Intellectual and/or Psychosocial Disabilities. EU Cross-Border Transfers, Detention and Alternatives”, implemented by the Ludwig Boltzmann Institute of Fundamental and Human Rights (Austria) in cooperation with partners across the European Union, including Bulgarian Helsinki Committee (Bulgaria), Dortmund University of Applied Sciences and Arts (Germany), Antigone (Italy), Peace Institute (Slovenia) and us, Mental Health Perspectives (Lithuania).