Despite of the negative feedback received from INGOs the Bioethics Committee decided to proceed with the Additional protocol to the Oviedo Convention, which will legitimize forced measures against people with “mental disorder”. Our representative, Jolijn Santegoeds, attended the plenary meeting of the Commitee on Bioethics, held on June 8 in Strasbourg and presented our position. Among other things she pointed out that first resorts must be put in place instead of “last resorts” and that many groups in the past were in the situation where their ability to live independently and make decisions was questioned, for example, women and people with Down syndrome. The representatives of Rehabilitation International (RI) supported the position that it is needed to organize first resorts, not last resorts.
The chair of the meeting then explained that the Draft Additional Protocol was drafted after a survey regarding REC2004/10, which pointed at legal gaps concerning the application of involuntary measures. Due to the concerns about the lack of safeguards, the Bioethics Committee has drafted the protocol. “The first resorts are also necessary, but fall under another body”.
Also it was said: “The comments of the public consultation have all been taken into account, and have been analysed. However, the Bioethics Committee has decided to continue with the Draft Additional Protocol”.
Later in the meeting, when minor details of the application of force started to be discussed, representative of the secretariat of the European Committee on the Prevention of Torture (CPT) suggested that permanent presence of staff during the use of restraints, to monitor safety, would have the additional benefit of “building a relation with the patient”. To this, Jolijn replied: “From experience, I know that this scenario is very degrading. Can you imagine, being tied up to a bed, and then there is someone in the room watching you. That is very degrading in itself, and when you ask ”please untie me”, the person says “no”. That is horribly degrading. That doesn’t lead to trust or relationships. Relationships cannot be produced under force, as applies to any relation, for example sexual relations.” She felt that some people in the room paid attention to her comment.
However, despite of the constant negative remarks from Jolijn and representative of MHE, Alva Finn, the discussion of the Additional protocol continued, and unfortunately, will be continued in the future at the next plenary meeting of the Bioethics Committee, to be held in October 2017, directly after the 20th anniversary of the Oviedo Convention. They promised to invite our representative, but it seems that the Additional protocol will be adopted despite all the negative feedback.
See more details about the meeting in Jolijn’s blog.
Also you can see the Joint Statement of ENUSP and MHE on Additional Protocol to Oviedo Convention.