LCHR in collaboration with Czech Helsinki Committee implements a project „Combating Hate Crime in Latvia and the Czech Republic: Legislation, Police Practice and the Role of NGOs” addressing the issue of ineffective policing of hate crime in Latvia and the Czech Republic.
The anti-discrimination projects „Latvia – Equal in Diversity I” and „Latvia – Equal in Diversity II” are administered by the Secretariat of Special Assignments Minister for Social Integration and implemented in collaboration with several partner organisations, including the Latvian Centre for Human Rights.
Project “Strengthening the Anti-Discrimination Work of the LCHR” was implemented by the LCHR (till 28 December 2005 Latvian Centre for Human Rights and Ethnic Studies) in partnership with the Netherlands Helsinki Committee. The long-term objective of the project was to strengthen knowledge, awareness and skills to prevent and combat discrimination in Latvia amongst key target groups in governmental and non-governmental circles.
Project „Monitoring Human Rights and Prevention of Torture in Closed Institutions: Prisons, Police Cells and Mental Health Care Institutions in Baltic Countries” implemented from 23 April 2003 to 23 July 2006 in partnership with the Centre for Public Policy PROVIDUS, Geneva Initiative on Psychiatry (the Netherlands) regional office in Lithuania, and the Mental Disability Advocacy Centre in Hungary.
Latvia has over 100 places of detention: 9 mental hospitals, 31 social care home, 15 prisons, 28 State police short-term detention cells, detention rooms at border posts, an illegal migrant detention facility at Olaine, and other facilities holding persons deprived of liberty by state authority. During the project „Monitoring Human Rights and Prevention of Torture in Closed Institutions: Prisons, Police Cells and Mental Health Care Institutions in Baltic Countries” 102 monitoring visits were conducted, including 15 visits to mental hospitals, 23 visits to social care homes for mentally disabled, 21 visit to state and municipal police custody facilities, 22 visits to prisons, 21 visit to illegal migrant detention facilities (and reception centre for asylum seekers and refugees).
