PRESS RELEASE
VARBANOV V. BULGARIA
ON 5 ÎCTOBER 2000 THE EUROPEAN COURT WILL DELIVER ITS DECISION ON THE CASE
The full text of the decision will be published around noon on October 5 at the following address
http://www.echr.coe.int
IN 1995 A PROSECUTOR ILLEGALLY ORDERED DIMITAR VARBANOV'S DETENTION AND FORCEFUL INTERNMENT IN A PSYCHIATRIC CLINIC FOR COMPULSORY EXAMINATION. BULGARIAN LEGISLATION DEPRIVED HIM OF THE POSSIBILITY TO APPEAL BEFORE COURT. DIMITAR VARBANOV SUBMITTED AN APPLICATION TO THE EUROPEAN COMMISSION OF HUMAN RIGHTS. IN 1999 THE COMMISSION CONCLUDED THAT BULGARIA HAD ACTED IN BREACH OF ITS OBLIGATIONS UNDER ARTICLE 5 OF THE EUROPEAN CONVENTION ON HUMAN RIGHTS, WHICH REFERS TO DETENTION OF INDIVIDUALS. IT IS EXPECTED THE COURT WILL RECONFIRM THE COMMISSION'S CONCLUSIONS.
Mr. Varbanov was represented before the Court by the legal programme of the Bulgarian Helsinki Committee. He is challenging the lawfulness of his deprivation of liberty and the lack of a possibility to appeal it before court.
THE FACTS
On 31 August 1995 Dimitar Varbanov, a retired economist from Machinoexport residing in Sofia, was
forcefully interned for psychiatric examination in the First Psychiatric Clinic of the Alexandrovska
State University Hospital with a prosecutor's order. On 16 October 1995 he returned home.
The Public Health Act, in force at the relevant time, however, did not authorise a prosecutor to order
detention of an individual for psychiatric examination. Consequently, Dimitar Varbanov's detention was
illegal.
On 30 April 1996 the Bulgarian court ruled that Dimitar Varbanov was not liable to compulsory psychiatric
treatment.
INTERNATIONAL STANDARDS
According to the European Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms restrictions to the right of liberty are admissible only in carefully defined, exceptional, cases. Deprivation of liberty of the mentally ill is such a case. In order to phase out arbitrariness and abuse of powers, the Convention lays down requirements for the deprivation of liberty of such individuals.
In the first place, it should be carried out in accordance with domestic law, which should provide for clear grounds and procedures for the detention.
In the second place, a qualified physician should definitely establish the mental illness.
In the third place, the mental illness should be serious enough to warrant detention.
And finally, prolongation of the detention should be directly connected with an on-going illness.
Article 5, para. 4 of the European Convention entitles detained individuals, including those forcefully interned in psychiatric clinics, to appeal the lawfulness of their detention before court.
CONCLUSIONS OF THE COMMISSION
On 21 April 1999 the European Commission of Human Rights unanimously adopted a Report in the case of Dimitar Varbanov. The report concluded that there had been a breach of Article 5 of the Convention by the Bulgarian state - concerning the unlawfulness of the detention and the impossibility to appeal the detention before court.
The decision of the European Court is expected on 5 October.
Based on Dimitar Varbanov's case, the Bulgarian Helsinki Committee wishes again to express its opinion that in spite of the 1997 and 1999 amendments to the Public Health Act, the procedure for compulsory psychiatric examination does not contain sufficient guarantees for the right of personal freedom. The sole aim of this procedure is the preparation of a medical opinion regarding the existence of a mental illness and the possibility for the individual to present a threat to him/herself or others. In practice, however, in many cases district prosecutors order detention for compulsory psychiatric examination without a preliminary opinion by a psychiatrist on necessity of hospital examination and its duration. Thus, the aim of the law is distorted, forcing psychiatric establishments to detain individuals, irrespective of the needs of the examination, turning these establishments into prisons. Another element of the procedure, which is frequently violated, is the lawful summoning of the individuals for voluntary psychiatric examination.
For additional information:
Mr. Georgi Mitrev
Legal Consultant
Tel. (02) 943 48 76
E-mail: bhc@omega.bg