ÜRO kodaniku- ja poliitiliste õiguste rahvusvahelise komitee 99.istungil osalemine

Vatķmįnįsteerįum

Sotsiaalministeerium Justiitsministeerium Õiguskantsler Siseministeerium

Marten Kokk Kantsler

03. mai 2O1O nr 8.3-11503-8

URo kodaniku- ja poliitiliste õiguste rahvusvahelise komitee 99. istungil osalemine

ÜRo kodaniku- ja potiitiliste õiguste rahvusvaheline pakt (International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights) jõustus Eesti Vabariigi suhtes 2I. jaanlarį 1992. aastal (avaldatud RT ĪI 1993, 10, 11). Vastavalt nimetatud pakti atiklile 40 kohustuvad pakti osalisriigid Üno peasekretärile esitama perioodilisi aruandeid paktis tunnustatud õiguste elluviimiseks rakendatud abinõude ja nende õiguste kasutamisel saavutatud pro gressi kohta.

Eesti esitas oma esimese aruande 1994. aastal ning viimase 2009. aastal. Komiteele esitatud Eesti aruanded on kättesaadavad Välisministeeriumi kodulehel: http : //www.vm.eel? q :etlnode/45 I 5.

Üfo rodaniku- ja poliitiliste õiguste rahvusvahelise komitee 99. istungi raames

toimub Eesti esitatud kolmanda aruande kaitsmine 12.-l3.juutit 2010 Genfis.

Palume informatsiooni Siseministeeriumi esindaja(te) osalemise võimalikkuse kohta aruande kaitsmisel 24.maiks 2010.

Lugupidamisega

Lisa: Eesti vastused ÜRo kodaniku- ja poliitiliste õiguste rahvusvahelise komitee lisaküsimustele 37 lehel i eks

Mirj am. M e is alu@mfa. e e

Mirjam Meisalu 6311 423

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Islandi väljak t 15049 Tallinn RegistrikoodT0002526

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e-kiri: [email protected]

Answers to the issues to be taken up in connection with the consideration of the third periodic report of Estonia (CCPR/C/EST/3)

Constitutional and lesal framework within which the Covenant and the Optional Protocol are implemented. risht to effective remedv (art. 2)

1. There have been 3 judgments of the Supreme Court of Estonia where the provisions of the Covenant have been invoked: 1) A judgment of 09.1I.2009 Ņo 3-3-1-61-09) - concerning the refusal of the

Citizenship and Migration Board to issue Estonian residence permit to a person residing on the territory of Estonia uniawfully (Article 23 of thę CCPR).

2) A judgment of 03.01.2008 Ņo 3-3-1-10i-06) - concerning the refusal of the Citizenship and Migration Board to grant citizenship to a person who had been employed by foreign security services (Article 26 of thę CCPR).

3) Ajudgmentof 11.03.2003 Ņo 3-I-3-I0-02)-DeclaringunconstitutionaltheLaw on the Implementation of the Penal Code which does not foresee the reduction of the punishment of a person convicted under the formerly in force Criminal Code down to the maximum limit of punishment foreseen by the special part of the Penal Code currently in force, which constitutes a more lenient punishment (Arricle 15 (1) of the CCPR).

2. Independence of the Chancellor of Justice

The institution of the Chancellor of Justice in Estonia is not part of the legislative, executive or judicial power, it is not a political or a law enforcement body. The institution of the Chancellor of Justice is established by the Constitution of the Republic of Estonial. The legal status of the Chancellor of Justice and the organisation of his office are provided by the Chancellor of Justice Act2.

The independence of the Chancellor of Justice is guaranteed by the constitution, by the Chancellor of Justice Act, appointment and release from offīce procedure, restrictions for hislher activities, requirements for his,trer staff and budget.

The Constitution of the Republic of Estonia $ 139 (1-2) stipulates: The ChancelTor of Justice shaTT be, įtl hįs or her actįvįtįes, fn independent official who shrĮT revįew the TegisTation of the TegisTative and executive powers and of TocaT governments for conformiŅ with the Constįtutįon and the ļaws. The ChfnceTTor of Justįce shaTļ anaTyse proposaTs made to hįm or her concerning the amendment of Taws, the passage of new laws, and the actįvįtįes of state agencies, and, tf necessaĪ?, shalT present a report to the Riigikogu.

Section I44 of the Constitution adds: The TegaT status of the ChanceTTor of Justice and the organisation of his or her office shall be provįded by law.

ļ Available online in bnglish: ļrttp://ww\Į,.iegaltext.eeltext/eĪ!-/X0000KI.htm. 2 Available online in English: httP://$ņl.ų,.lęeaļtext.eę/etiandmebaas/tekst.asp?ioc:text&dok=X3004 iK7&keel:ęn&pg:1&pt}lņ:RT&ty w:X&quew:7oD5 iguskantsieri+seadus.

Appointment of the Chancellor of Justice

Section 140 of the Constitution stipuiates: The ChrncelTor of Justįce shaTT be appointed to office by the Riigikogu, on the proposaĮ of the Presįdent of the RepubTic, for a term of seven years. The ChrnceTTor of Justice may be removedfrom office onTy by a court judgment.

According to $ 6 of the Chancellor of Justice Act the Chancellor of Justice must be an Estonian citizen who has active legal capacity, is of high moral character, is fuliy proficient in the official language, must have completed an academic education in law and he or she must be an experienced and recognised lawyer.

Section 8 of the Chancelior of Justice Act stipulates that the authority of the Chancellor of Justice is deemed to be terminated: l) as of the date of expiry of the seven year term; 2) as of the date of his or her resignationfrom ofice; 3) as of the date of entry into force of a judgment of the Supreme Court en banc įn the case of his or her extended inability to perform hįs or her functions for more than sįx consecutįve months,- 4) as of the date of entry into force of a conviction by a court against him or her for an įntentįonaTTy commįtted crimįnal offence; 5) as of the date of entry into force of a conviction by a court against him or her which prescrįbes imprisonmentfor a crįminaT offence commįtted due to negĮigence,. 6) upon his or her death.

Section 10 of the Chancelior of Justice Act stipulates that if the Chancellor of Justice is unable to perform his or her functions for six consecutive months due to illness or for any other reason, the President of the Republic shall filę a reasoned petition with the Supreme Court to declare by a decision that the Chancellor of Justice is unable to perform his or her functions. The Supreme Court en banc shall review the petition and make a decision promptly and the decision of the Supreme Court en banc which has entered into force releases the Chancellor of Justice from office.

According to $ 11 (1) of the Chancellor of Justice Act (repeats $ i45 of the Constitution) criminal charges may be brought against the Chancellor of Justice only on the proposal of the President of the Republic and with the consent of the majority of the membership of the Riigikogu.

It stems from above that the Chancellor of Justice cannot be removed from the office on the basis of political reasons.

Restrictions for his/her activiües

The independence of Chancellor of Justice is guaranteed by many restrictions on activities. According to $ 12 of the Chancellor of Justice Act during his or her term of office, the Chancellor of Justice shall not hold another state or local government office or an office of a legal person in public law; participate in the activities of political parties (consequently he/she cannot be a member and also participating in whatever activities is prohibited); belong to the management board, supervisory board or supervisory body of a commercial undertaking; engage in enteņrise, except his or her personal investments and

the interest and dividends received therefrom and income received from the disposal of

his or her property. The Chancellor of Justice is permitted to engage in research or teaching unless this hinders the perfolĪnance of his or her functions. Al1 these restrictions apply to Deputy Chancellor of Justice-Advisers and also to advisers to the Chancellor of Justice ($ 39 of the Act).

Budget

Section 12 of the State Budget Act3 stipulates that budget negotiations shali be held between representatives of the Ministry of Finance and the constitutional institution (including the Chancellor of Justice) concerning a budget project and the justification for and feasibility of the expenditure included therein. Minutes shall be prepared concerning the negotiations in which the budget project amounts approved by the representatives of the parties or ļeft unapproved are set out, in the case of the latter with the addition of the dissenting opinions.

Following negotiations the Ministry of Finance shall, on the basis of the budget projects of the constitutional institutions (including the Chancellor of Justice) and the ministries, compile a draft state budget and submit it together with an explanatory memorandum to the Government of the Republic. When including amounts from the budget project of a constitutional institution in the draft state budget, the Ministry of Finance may make amendments thereto if such amendments have been approved in the course of negotiations set out in section 12.

Section 15 of the State Budget Act foresees that when reviewing the draft state budget, the Government of the Repubiic has the right to amend amounts entered therein or to omit amounts there from, unless otherwise provided by law. However, upon amendment or omission of amounts designated in the draft state budget for a constitutional institution, the Government of the Republic shall present the amendments together with justification therefore in the explanatory memorandum to the draft state budget.

State budget is adopted by the pariiament.

The budget of the Office of the Chancellor of Justice shall be approved by the Chancellor of Justice based on the state budget ($ 42 (1) of the Chancellor of Justice Act). The Chancellor of Justice as constitutional institution shall classiĄz the expenditure presented in the adopted state budget further in his/ļrer own budget in accordance with the budget classification. The constitutional institutions shall submit their budsets to the Ministrv of Finance.

The Chancellor of Justice determines salaries of his/įrer staff. The budget of the office of the Chancellor of Justice shall prescribe funds for payrnent for consultations, transiation, inteņretation and expert assessment in the amount of up to 20 per cent of the annual salary fund as well. The procedure for payment of remuneration to consultants, translators, inteņreters and specialists shall be established by the Chancellor of Justice ($ 42 (2) of the Act). Section 45 (3) of the State Budget Act also stipulates that an audit of the annual report of constitutional institutions (including the Chanceilor of Justice) shall be conducted by the State Audit Offrce.

. Available onļine in English: http:/iwwv,.legaltext.eeletlandmebaas/tekst.asp?ioc:text&doleX60037K2&keeļ:en&pg:1&pt}rņ:RT&tv vp:X&queņĒrii gieelarve+seadus.

It stems from above that the budget of the Chancellor of Justice is separate part of the state budget - it is not part of the budget of any other body or institutions and the Chancellor of Justice has absolute managemęnt and control over it in the boundaries set by the parliament.

Resources allocated

The Office of the Chancellor of Justice is located in Tallinn, Kohtu Street 8.4 In 2009 the budget of the Office of the Chancellor of Justice was 24 829 1I0 EEK, in 20i0 the budget is25 132483 EEK. In 2010 there are 39 officials working in the Office of the

Chancellor of Justice. The salary rate of the Chancellor of Justice is set by the Higher Offrcials' Salary Act. The salary equals the salary of a minister.

Mandate of the Chancellor of Justice

The Estonian model of the institution of Chancellor of Justice is unique. In addition to the functions of the ombudsman (constitutional basis is $ 139 (2) of the Constitution), the Chancellor also performs the function of supervision over the constitutionality of legislation (constitutional basis is $ 139 (1) of the Constitution). This combined functionality allows a more complex approach to petitions by individuals. It is often found during proceedings that an activity of a state agency which a petitioner considered to be a case of maladministration actually arose from the requirements of an unconstitutional law or regulation. In cases of this kind, the Chancellor of Justice can find a soiution to the problem by contacting the body that passed the relevant legal act and proposing that the act be brought into conformity with the Constitution.

Functions of ombudsman

The Chancellor of Justice Act regulates only the most important aspects, e.g. - who can be supervised; - how the petition can be submitted'; - what data should it contain; - what ate the bases of refusal of reviewing the petition (obligatory and

discretionary bases); - what are the rights and obligations of the Chancellor of Justice, e.g unrestricted

access to documents, other materials and areas, rift to demand information, - completion of proceedings.

According to $ 19 (1) of the Act the agencies under supervision are state agency, local government agency or body, legal person in public law, natural person or legal persons in private law performing public duties. The Chancellor controls whether the agency under supervision adheres to the principles of observance of the fundamental rifts and freedoms and to the principles of sound administration.

Ombudsman proceedings may begin either with a petition submitted by an individual or upon the Chancellor's own initiative. When contacted by an individual, the Chancellor of

o official web-page in English: http://www.oiguskantsler.eęl?lane:ene. 5 The petition can be submitted oraliy (in practice through telephone ep eeming to the office - there is one adviser who ręceives people) and in writiņg - both are possible (irr practice petition can be submitted also electronically through webpage or just sending an e-mail (no digital signature is usually required).

4

Justice decides whether to accept the petition for proceedings. It is usually done in one month6 (however the law does not foresee any formal deadlines for the Chancellor of the Justice) and a letter with the outcome - whether the petition is proceeded or not - is sent to the person in writing.

A petition is rejected if the matter it raises falls outside the competence of the Chancęllor of Justice, or if a court judgment has entered into effect in the matter, or if court proceedings or compulsory administrative challenge proceedings are pending in the matter. The Chancellor of Justice is not competent to amend or review decisions passed by judicial bodies. The Chancellor may consider rejecting a petition if it is manifestly unfounded or if it is not clear from the petition what constituted a violation of the petitioner's rights. A petition may also be rejected if it is submitted more than one year after the individual became or should have become aware of a violation of their rights. This requirement arises from the premise that when a long time has passed after a violation it is either extremely complicated, or even impossible, to ascertain what had acbnlly happened and to reach the rift decision. The Chancellor of Justice may also reject an appiication if other more effective legal remedies are available to the petitioner. As a rule, individuals should try to resolve their problem by using the most effective legal remedies: for example, by filing an administrative challenge to a relevant body or friing a complaint with a court. Uniike court decisions, the opinions of the Chancellor of Justice are only advisory in nature.

If the Chancellor of Justice rejects a petition, he informs the petitioner about it in writing, where necessary explaining to the individual any further possibilities for protection of their rifts. If the Chanceļlor of Justice proceeds the petition, procedural steps (already taken or will be taken) of the Chancellor of Justice and the name and contacts of the investigator are described in the letter sent to the person. Sometimes additional information is asked from the petitioner. At the same time the Chancellor of Justice asks for information from relevant public authorities in order to find out what really happened and clear all necessary aspects and details.

An important part of the activities of the Chancellor of Justice in relation to protecting fundamental rights is based on the Chancellor's own initiative, i.e. either drawing up analyses of certain issues or conducting inspection visits.

Topics of own-initiative proceedings and agencies to be inspected are selected on the basis of advance information. As a rule, choices are based on a previously drawn-up work plan but, if necessary, information published in the media may also be used (e.g. information concerning certain activities by public authorities that may endanger fundamental rights, or the sudden emergence of acute topical issues in society). Proceedings conducted by the Chancelior of Justice are characterised by freedom of choice of form, and the principle of expediency. This means that the Chancellor decides in each par.ticular case which of the avaiiable procedural measĪ.Tres would be the quickest and most effective, but at the same time the least burdensome for participants in the proceedings. Clearly, the principle of freedom of choice of form is not applied in cases

, Internally the Chancęllor of Justice tries to follow 3 months rule: aftęr receiving a petition the person will get in one month answer whether thę Chancellor will proceed or not. And if yes, a letter to public authorities demanding for iņformation is sęnt out (usually one month is given to them to answer). After receiving the answer from public authority the Chancellor tries to formuiate his/her position in one month. This is an ideal ruie that cannot be always followed, e.g, it comes out from the answęr of the public authority that additional information is needed or the case happens to be very complicated etc.

where the law prescribes the form of proceedings. The investigative principle also characterises proceedings conducted by the Chancellor of Justice. This means that the

Chancellor will not proceed merely from information and materials submitted by participants in proceedings but where necessary also ascertains other facts and

circumstances relevant in the matter, and collects evidence on his own initiative. During proceedings the Chancellor of Justice may freely access all relevant materials and places, may request written information from participants, obtain written statements and

explanations, if necessary involving experts in the proceedings. The Chancellor has an

access to state secrets classified as top secret. The Chancellor may conduct inspection visits (either with or without advance notification) to agencies under supervision whose activities involve a hifer risk of restricting fundamęntal individual rifts (e.g. prisons, police detention centres, care homes, or schools for children with special needs).

The law establishes certain procedural guarantees in cases where agencies under supervision hamper the activities of the Chancellor of Justice by hiding information, providing incorrect or insufficient information, or denying free access. According to $ 35 (2-3) of the Chancellor of Justice Act the ChancelTor may request launching of disciplinary proceedings in respect of individuals hampering his activities; alternatively, he may inform the public about such situations.

Section 351 of the Chancellor of Justice Act stipulate that following ombudsman proceedings, the Chancellor of Justice expresses an opinion, assessing whether a person performing public functions had compiied with the law and whether communication with that person took place in accordance with the principles of good administration. In his opinion, the Chancellor may express criticism or standpoints, or make specific recoĪnmendations for eliminatine a violation.

The measures laid down by law are not so-called "coercive" in character. The Chancellor's opinion is advisory. Compliance with the opinion is ensured through the

high level of legal professionalism contained in it and throuf the widely recognised authority of the institution of the Chancellor of Justice.

To ensure enforcement of opinions of the Chancellor of Justice, the Chancellor of Justice Act ($ 352) enables the Chancellor to submit follow-up inquiries to supervised institutions in order to check how his opinions have been complied with. ln cases of non-compiiance with his opinion, the Chancellor may submit a report accordingly to the agency that performs reŅar supervision over the institution, to the Government, or to the

Parliament. At the Chancellor's discretion, information about a case may also be disclosed to the pubtic. Disclosure of information can also be used as a measure against those who hamper proceedings or who unjustifiably refuse to comply with the

ChancelĮor,s opinion.

An opinion of the Chancellor of Justice is final and cannot be appealed in court ($ 35' (3)).

ConstitutionaĮ review

According to $ 15 of the Chancellor of Justice Act, everyone has the right of recourse to

the Chancellor of Justice to review the conformity of an Act or other legislation of general application with the Constitution or the law.

The proceedings may be started also on Chancellor's own initative.

The Chancellor of Justice Act does not provide clear rules what procedural steps should be taken but in practice the Chancellor asks for information from relevant ministries. agencies etc and on the basis of the information received decides the matter.

The Constitution stipulates (5 I42, reaffrrmed in $$ 17-18 of the Chancellor of Justice Act): "If the Chancellor of Justice finds that legislation passed by the legislative or executive powers or by a local government is in conflict with the Constitution or alaw, he or she shall propose to the body which passed the leislation to bring the legislation into conformity with the Constitution or the law within twenty days. If the legislation is not brought into conformity with the Constitution or the law within twenty days, the Chancellor of Justice shall propose to the Supreme Court to declare the legislation invalid."

It stems from above that there is clear "coercive" outcome of the constitutional review proceedings - the Chancellor may turn to the Supreme Court who can declare the legislation invalid.

In addition to these two main functions - ombudsman and constitutional review - there are aiso other functions. The most important relevant here is the prevention of ilļ- treatment. Section 1 (7) stipulates that the Chancellor of Justice is the preventive state authority (national preventive mechanism) provided for in Article 3 of the Optional Protocol of the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (OPCAT, see below).

In addition. $ 141 (2) stipulates that the Chancellor of Justice may participate in sessions of the Riigikogu and the Government of the Republic, with the right to speak. Section 2 (2) adds that agendas of sessions of the Riigikogu and the Government of the Republic together with draft legislation to be debated shall be sent to the Chancellor of Justice.

Reliability of the Chancellor of Justice

The Chancellor of Justice has always had a very high reputation and reliability in the society and it has constantly increased over the years. On the basis of the survey the reliability of the Chancellor of Justice was 79%o in 2001. Due to the appointment of the new Chancellor of Justice in 10 March 2008 the reliability has fallen to 660/o. In December 2009 the reliability rose to 68%.

Ability to invesügate7

In 2008, the Chancellor of Justice received 2566 petitions, on the basis which 1944 cases were opened. As compared to 2007, the number of petitions rose by 11 .3%o.Duing 2008, there were 1944 cases opened, which is tI.7o/o more than in2007. As at 1 February 2009, 1794 proceedings had been completed, in 52 cases follow-up proceedings were pending and 98 cases were still being investigated. In 480 cases, substantive proceedings were conducted during the reportingyęar, and in ļ464 cases no proceedings were initiated for various reasons. During the reporting year,66 proceedings were initiated based on the

, Alrrual reports containing statistics is availablę online in Engiish: http :iir.vww. oiquskantsler. ee/?menulD:5 5.

Chancellor's own initiative. In 2008, the Chancellor of Justice ca:ried out 18 inspection visits to 39 places of detention. 359 cases were opened conceming imprisoned persons.

In2009, the Chancelior of Justice received 2729 petitions, on the basis which 2033 cases were opened. As at 1 February 20t0, 1882 proceedings had been completed, in 47 cases follow-up proceedings were pending and 104 cases were still being investigated.In 449 cases, substantive proceedings were conducted during the reporting year, and in 1584 cases no proceedings were initiated for various reasons. During the reporting year, 76 proceedings were initiated based on the Chancellor's own initiative. In 2009, the Chancellor of Justice carried ort 26 inspection visits to 39 places of detention. 402 cases were opened concerning imprisoned persons.

Discriminatįon against women and domestic violence (arts. 2(1). 3.26)

3. AppTication of the Gender Equality Act by national courts

It is not possible at the moment to receive reliable and comprehensive information about the number of cases in thę national courts where the Gender Equality Act has been discussed. But we would like to draw the attention of the Committee to one recent decision of the Supreme Court of Estonia (20.Įl.2009; No 3-3-1-41-09, available in Estonian at: http:llwww.nc.eel?id:7l&tekst:222520507). The decision was made by the Supreme Court en banc and concerned review of constitutionality of a reŅation in the Police Service Act according to which the obligatory pension age for female police personnel was lower than that of men. Among other aspects the Supreme Court pointed out that this difference can influence also the sum of pension. The court decided to

declare the reguiation unconstitutional for the reason of being discriminatory based on sex of a person. Although the Gender Equality Act was referred to in this case, the court did not find it necessary to analyse the compliance of the situation with this act.

Examples of cases concerning the application of the Gender EquaTiŅ Act by national courts, in particular regarding matters of equal pay for equal work

Gender Equality and Equal Treatment Commissioner (hereafter the Commissioner) has

information on four discrimination cases from 2009 which were originally brought to the attention of the Commissioner and which are now tried before the domestic courts. Two of these cases dispute primarily the legality of termination of employment contract of female employees but address also the issue of equal pay for equal work. The other two cases concern unequal treatment of male employees in comparison to female employees in relation to punishments under disciplinary procedures.

Information on the relationship between Gender Equality Act and Equal Treatment Act

ln the years 2005-2008 the mandate of the Commissioner was to monitor compliance with the Gender Equaiity Act. In 2009 the mandate was expanded to monitor also compliance with the Equal Treatment Act and the regulation concerning the tasks and powers of the Commissioner were moved from the Gender Equality Act to the Equal Treatment Act.

Provisions concerning the settlement of discrimination disputes, legal remedies to the victims of discrimination, shift of burden of proof in the discrimination cases etc, are

almost identical in the two acts in question. Considerable difference exists what concerns the field of application of the acts. The Gender Equality Act applies in all fields of life with the exception of family and private life. The Equal Treatment Act, however, limits the field of application depending on the ground of discrimination (see g 2).

Įn the work of the Commissioner monitoring the compliance over both acts has simplified handling of cases concerning discrimination on multiple grounds. For example in 2009 there were several cases where employers were looking for recruiting empioyees of a particular sex and of certain age.

The Gender Equality Act has been enacted to ensure the principle of equal treatment of men and women arising from the Constitution of the Republic of Estonia and to promote gender equality as a fundamental human right and for the public good in all areas of social life. The puņose of the Equal Treatment Act is to ensure the protection of persons against discrimination on the grounds of nationality (ethnic origin), race, colour, reiigion or othęr beliefs, age, disability or sexual orientation. The two acts have different scope of application. While the scope of application of the Gender Equality Act is all areas of social life, except professing and practising faith or working as a minister of a reliģon in a registered religious association and relations in family or private life, the scope of the Equal Treatment Act is limited and also different for different grounds. The acts have also some parallel similar regulations due to similarities in the EU directives which are among the bases for these two acts. Also, after the entry into force of the Equal Treatment Act on 1't of January 2009 the institution of the Gender Equality Commissioner which was previously regulated in the Gender Equality Act became the Gender Equality and Equal Treatment Commissioner and is now regulated in the Equal Treatment Act. The translation of the Gender Equality Act can be found here: http://ūrq.w.legaltext.eeletlandmebaas/tekst.asp?loc:text&dok:X8OO41K1&keel:en&pg : 1 &ptyyp:RT&:X&quer],:sooiise and the translation of the Equal Treatment Act here: http:/iuņvų,.legaltext.eeietlandmebaas/tekst.asp?loc:text&dok:XXXX006K1&keel:en& p g: 1 &ptyyp:RT&tlTrp:X&query:r,%P5rdse

Steps taken by the State parŅ to give effect to the findings of the Gender EquaTiŅ Commissioner on violations of the principle of equal treatment between men and women

According to the $ 17 of the Equal Treatment Act, the Commissioner shall provide an opinion to persons who suspect they have been discriminated. The puņose of the opinion is to provide an assessment whether the principle of equal treatment has been violated or not. The opinion of thę Commissioner is not legally binding and should rather give the applicant more certainty whether to pursue legal resolution to the dispute (either in court, throuf the Labour Dispute committee, the chancellor of Justice, or eise).

In two circumstances the Commissioner's suggestions to change the law in force have resulted in amendments in legal acts. Firstly, in 2009 the stipulation $ 35 in the Labour Contract Act prohibiting women to be employed in heavy and hazardous work was repealed). Secondly, also in 2009 the provision was introduced to the Gender Equality Act $ 6 (discrimination in professional life) that prohibits employers and agencies mediating work to ask about the employee candidate's marital or family status in the course of recruitment orocedure.

In 2009 the Commissioner found in one case that the state actor was not in compiiance with the principle of equal treatment. The case is pending before the administrative court.

ln October 2009 an amendment to the Equal Treatment Act entered into force which specifically states that the principle of shared burden of proof is also ņplied in the cases

where a person asks an opinion from the Gender Equality and Equal Treatment Commissioner. The person has to set out the facts on the basis of which it can be presumed that discrimination based on sex has occurred. In the course of proceedings, it shall be for the respondent to prove that there has been no breach of the principle of equai treatment. If the person refuses to provide proof, such refusal shall be deemed to be equal to acknowledgement of discrimination by the person. Such reŅation should influence the respondents to be active in the process which in turn will enable the Commissioner to prepare more adequate opinions. ln addition, in order to rise the efficiency of the

Commissioner in equal pay cases, the Equal Treatment Act now provides specifically that

the Commissioners' right to obtain information includes also information concerning the

ręmuneration calculated, paid or payable to an employee, the conditions for remuneration and other benefits. Also, in order to give more effect to the opinions of the

Commissioner, s/he now has the obligation in the case of an opinion provided on the

Commissioner's own initiative or with the consent of the person who submitted an

application, to communicate the opinion to the person responsible for compliance with the principle of equal treatment in a situation on which the opinion is based for information or aS a recoĪnmendation.

Information on the resoTįrces allocated to the Gender EquaTiŲ Commįssįoner for its activities

According to $ 15 (3) of the Equal Treatment Act, the activities of the Commissioner are

financed from the state budget.

The budget of the Commissioner has been the following since the establishment of the position in October 2005:

Total Of this wases of this economįc costs EEK EUR EEK EUR EEK EUR

2005 400 000 25 565 250 000 15 978 1s0 000 9 587

2006 800 000 51 t29 645 000 41223 15s 000 9 906 2007 863 550 55 191 808 200 51 653 55 350 3 538 2008 9s0 000 60 71.6 894 650 51 178 55 350 3 s38 2009 923 254 s9 007 867 904 55 469 55 350 3 538 201,0 941, 455 60 170 886 105 56 632 55 350 3 538

The staff consists of two persons: the Commissioner and one adviser. The adviser is position since September 2006.Ln2009 the adviser was workingpart time (75%) due

budgetary constraints. The establishment of the Gender Equality Council has been postponed due to lack of resources.

Relationship between the Commissioner and the Chancellor of Justice

One of the competences of the Commissioner according to the Equal Treatment Act $ 16

(8) is to cooperate with other persons and agencies to promote gender equality and equal

in to

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4.

treatment. Stipulations $ 35re (4) and (5) in the Chancellor of Justice Act foresee similar responsibility of cooperation in order to promote the principle of equality and equal treatment.

On occasions the Commissioner and the Chancellor of Justice have adhered to this duty of cooperation. For example the Chancellor has forwarded a few cases of possible discrimination to the Commissioner. ln turn the Commissioner has recommended Chancellor's procedures when possible breach of equal treatment has been attributable to alegal act or to activities of a public authority.

The main differences between the proceedings and their effect of the Commissioner and the Chancellor of Justice are following:

The conciliation procedures of the Chancellor of Justice concerning discrimination disputes between private persons are voluntary, i.e. both parties have to agree to the proceedings. The Commissioner may issue an opinion to a person suspecting discrimination also without the consent of the other party involved.

However if private parties do consent to the conciliation procedures of the Chancellor of Justice the agreement reached will be mandatory to abide by. The opinion of the Commissioner, on the other hand, is not legally binding.

Rieht to life (art. 6)

The relevant amendment to the Penal Code entered into force on 1 January 2009. The provision reads as follows:

ģ 22] Attempted' įnstįgation, agreement to a proposįtįon to commįt a crįmįnal q{fence and agreement to commįt a joįnt crįmįnaT qffence (Į) Attempted instigation, agreement to a proposition to commįt a crimįnaT offence

or agreement to commįt a joint crįmįnaT offence are punishabTe įn case of offences Tįsted in chapters 8, 9, ]3, ļ8 fnd 22 of the current Code and offences Įįsted įn sectįons 2, 4 and 5 of chapter ]5 for which the maxįmum rate of punishment is at ļeast ] 2 years or Tife imprisonment.

(2) A person įs heĮd responsible for the acts įn this paragraph only įn case rt Teast one of the perpetrators of an offence Tisted įn section I of this paragraph performs an addįtįonaT act wįth the aįm to advance the commįtting of an offence.

(3) A person who commįts an attempted instigation is imposed punishment under the Same provision of the PenaT Code whįch foresees the Tiabiliņ of a perpetrator unļess otherwise provįded by $ 24 of this Code.

According to the laws in force, alaw enforcement official has the right to use a firearm in cases listed in the law as a iast resort, in case it is not possible to perform the assigned duties without endangering life or health.

A new draft of Law Enforcement Act which will estabiish a new regime of the use of firearms by law enforcement authorities is currently in the proceedings of thę pariiament. The relevant provision orovides:

J.

11

6.

1

,,ģ 80. Use qf a fįrearm (l) The poTice or other Taw enforcement body provided by law may use a firearm to

combat serious danger if the combating of danger is not possibTe by any other means of coercįon or is not possįbTe įn due tįme and taking įnto account that įn using a firearm aĮĮ possibTe measures wįTT be appTied to avoįd endangering any other substantįal TegaĮ right.

(2) The police or other competent Taw enforcement body may use a firearm against a person onTy as an extreme measure to prevent him.from attacking, resisting or escaping įn case it is not possįbTe to achįeve this aįm by using any other arm against an animaĮ or object or ūny other įmmedįate measure of coercįon and įn case įt is aĮso necessaty to:

T) combat immediate danger to Įife or bodiĮy integriŅ,. 2) combat the commįtting of an įmmedįate or aTready current first degree offence or an offence.for whįch the punishment is life imprisonment; 3) detain a suspect, an accused or a convicted offender or prevent his escape if he may be

deprived of lįberŅ under the ļaw of if he has been deprived of TiberŅ įn reĮatįon to

committing of a vioTent first degree offence or an offence for whįch the punishment may

be Tife imprisonment."

Prohibition of torture and cruel. inhuman or degrading treatment. libertv and securify of the person. and treatment of prisoners (arts. 7. 9" 10)

The analysis regarding the definition of torture in the Penal Code will be conducted by the Ministry of Justice in2)II.

Prevention of torture and ill-treatment

Since 18 February 2007, the Chancellor of Justice performs the functions of the national preventive mechanism in Estonia. In several other countries, ombudsman or another

authority performing the functions of an ombudsman has also been designated as the preventive mechanism.

In Estonia there are almost 150 establishments qualifying as places of detention within the meaning of the Optional Protocol. The majority of them are police detention facilities and social welfare establishments. In 2009, the Chancellor of Justice carried out 26 inspection visits to 39 places of detention. in 2008, the Chancellor of Justice carried out 18 inspection visits to 39 places of detention, among them 12 reŅar visits and 2] unannounced visits. By comparison, the same number of visits (i.e. 18) were also conducted in200l.

The choice of establishments inspected is based on annual working plan (not public) which is composed on the basis of clear criteria _ ę.g.the need to inspect places of detention systematicaliy and after reguiar intervals, probability of ill-treatment, characteristics of detainees (age, culture etc) etc are taken account. In addition, āīY information received by the Chancellor which showed the need for immediate inspection was also taken into account. A separate mention couid be made of the series of inspection visits in2008-2010 to places of detention where individuals are detained only for a shorį period of time. The aim of the piect was to inspect the conditions in the relevant facilities and, based on the circumstances ascertained, to propose to the Ministry of Internal Affairs to draft legislative provisions regulating short-term detention.

The establishments inspected in 2008 and2009 are:

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1. police establishments; 2.Defence Forces; 3. prisons; 4. border guard establishments; 5. court houses; 6. psychiatric care providers; 7. providers of treatment of infectious diseasęs; 8. special schools.

Experts are also sometimes used in inspection visits, e.g. medical doctors, child psychiatrists and psychologists who assisted in carrying out interviews in special schools and prisons.

It should be emphasised that during the inspection visits the Chancellor provides an opporfunity for a meeting for all individuals held in the place of detention, as well as their close ones and members of the staff. Random interviews are also conducted. The Chancellor and his staff always talk to people in the place of detention while touring the establishment. Different informational material is always taken to the places of detention with the aim to help people whose liberty has been restricted better understand thęir fundamental rights and freedoms and effectiveiy make use of different complaint mechanisms. The main type of information materiaļ distributed at places of detention includes a booklet explaining the competences of the Chancellor of Justice together with a complaint form, a leaflet containing information about state legal aid and a brochure on patient.ights.

As a result of inspection visits, a summary is compiled, containing recommendations and proposals to the inspected establishment and other relevant authorities. E.g. in 2008, the Chancellor of Justice made 40 proposals and 46 recommendations based on inspection visits. Summaries of inspection visits are also published on the Chancellor of Justice website immediately after sending them to the addressees.

The media have covered the Chancellor's conclusions reached on the basis of inspection visits in 2008 on more than fifty occasions, inciuding news, articles, opinions, interviews, commentaries and editorials published in paper editions of national and local newspapers; online news and news stories; coverage in news portals; news and articles in specialist newspapers.

ln addition to inspection visits, other activities for preventing ill-treatment have been carried out with the aim to raise awafeness of the essence of ilļ-treatment and the need to fight it among staff and individuals held in the places of detention as well as among the wider public.

The officials from the Office of the Chancellor of Justice organise also training seminars and information days for staff in places of detention as well as other relevant persons. For exampĮe, three information days of the rights of children were held in 2008 with the attendance of staff from juvenile committees and special schools. A training seminar on the Istanbul Protocol for persons employed by psychiatric care providers was held and a presentation on the rights of persons in social welfare establishments was delivered. In 2009 also a seminar for police officers about specific cases concerning the police was orsanised.

ļJ

In order to address more general shortcomings, the Office of the Chancellor of Justice has

organised roundtables. During 2008, for example, two roundtables on the issues of health care and catering in places of detention were held. In addition, the Chancellor of Justice has established effective cooperation with the Ministries of Justice and lnternal Affairs to

investigate cases of death in prisons.

For a more detailed analysis of the protection of fundamental rifts and freedoms and the prevention of ill-treatment in particular fields, comprehensivę articles in specialist publications have been issued.

In his activities as thę preventive mechanism, the Chancellor of Justice considers it very important to have intemational cooperation with other preventive bodies and relevant intemational organisations. Therefore, the Chancellor and his advisers attended several events on these issues and also delivered oresentations.

Annual report

Section 143 of the Constitution provides: "The Chancellor of Justice shall present an annual report to the parliament on the

conformity of the legislation passed by the legislative and executive powers and by iocal governments with the Constitųtion and the laws,,

Section 4 of the Chancelior of Justice Act adds that annual overview (written) to the

parliament covers constitutional review, supervision over legaiity of legislation and over observance of fundamental rights and freedoms (ombudsman's tasks) and overview of hislher activity as the preventive state authority provided for in Articie 3 of the Optional Protocol of the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment. The Chancellor of Justice shall present a (oral) report to the

parliament on the basis of the (written) overview during the third working week of the

autumn plenary session.

Cooperation with NGOs and UN

Cooperation of the Office of the Chancelior of Justice with non-profit associations has

been an important prioriŅ, Non-profit associations frequentiy submit applications to the

Chancellor of Justice on behalf of persons. The advisers to the Chancellor of Justice have participated in seminars and information events organised by the third sector in order to

explain the competence of the Chancellor of Justice and the issues of human and

fundamental rights, equal treatment, children's rights etc.

Adviser to the Chancellor of Justice held reguiar meetings with the members of the

Patients Representativę Association of Estonia. At these meetings the issues of access to medical care, psychiatric care and health care administration were considered.

An important course of action of the Chancellor of Justice has been the protection of the

rights of the child and cooperation with the organisations fostering the rights of the child. The focus of cooperation was the guarantee of the rights of children with special needs.

The Union for Child 'Welfare makes an invaluabie partner for the Chancellor of Justice, pointing out the problems in legislation as well as concrete cases in practice, where the

interference of the Chancellor of Justice on his own initiative is necessary. The Chanceiior of Justice may receive complaints also directly submitted by children.

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Consent of a parent or a guardian is not necessary. In practice the Chancellor of Justice has received most of the complaints directly from children while carrying out inspection visits to different child welfare institutions.

In cooperation with the third sector, local government associations, the Ministry of Social Affairs and the Ministry of Education and Research, extensive preparations began in the field of school health care for guaranteeing the health of pupils and for organising a roundtable on school health.

There have also been other roundtables on the following issues: o How to protect children in the school environment, accompanied by a public

awareness campaign (e.g. articles, interviews in the media) and memoranda to relevant institutions.

o Nursery places - one for every child, to draw attention to the lack of capacity in Estonia,s nĮįrsery school system.

o A round table on preventive health check-ups entitled "Preventive health check-ups: healthy people, sustainable healthcare,, .The puņose of the round table was to involve policymakers in a discussion on whether preventive health check-ups could provide a guarantee of the sustainability of the Estonian healthcare system and the preservation of the Estonian people.

OPCAT stipulates that when creating their national preventive mechanisms ŅPM), States Parties should, as far as possible, take into account the "Principies relating to the status of national institutions for the promotion and protection of human rights" (the so- called Paris Principles). Both the Optional Protocol and the Paris Principles stress the independence of the preventive mechanism as one of the most important requirements. The preventive mechanism must be independent both functionally (freedom to manage its budgetary resources, sufficiency of resources, freedom to make decisions conceming its actions, privileges and immunities necessary for the performance of its functions, etc) and personally (appointment procedure, ..distance,, from the executive authoriŅ, etc). Experts used by the preventive mechanism should have necessary competence and professional experience and knowledge. As the Chancellor of Justice performs the functions of the national preventive mechanism in Estonia, hence it should be in futl compliance with the Paris Principles.

Cooperation with TIN Subcommittee on Prevention of Torture and other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (SPT)8 refers also to the compliancy with the Principles. The SPT is in the process of exploring ways to develop a pilot programme for assistance to NPMs, based on a combination of workshops and observation of NPM visits in action, with subsequent feedback and exchange of views. The workshop model arose from a meeting with a representative of the Estonian NPM during the fifth SPT plenary session. The first workshop on "Organising, carrying out and reporting on preventive visits" was organised in Tallinn, Estonia, from 28 September to 1 October 2009. The workshop was conceived as an exchange of experience between the Chancellor of Justice as Estonian National Preventive Mechanism and experts from the European Committee for the Prevention of Torture (CPT)e, SPT and the Association for the Prevention of Torture (APT)to.

" off,rciaļ web-page: http://www2.ohchr.orgienglistr/bodies/caįopcatlindęx.htm, ., offi cial wę-page : http : /i u.wu,. cpt. coe. int/err/.

ļ 0 offi ci al *"į-pug.. Ēņrķ.*uprnu. 15

The 20th anniversary of the European Committee for the Prevention of Torture (CPT) was marked in StrasboTlrg on 06 November 2009 with a high-profile conference 'New Partnerships for the Prevention of Torture in Europe'. This large-scale event, which was co-organised by the CPT and APT, gathered for the first time representatives from the

CPT, the UN Subcommittee on Prevention of Torture (SPT), European National Preventive Mechanisms CNPMs) and civil society. Ms Nele Parrest, Deputy Chancellor of Justice of Estonia gave a speech in the conference.

Additional notice

The International Coordinating Committee of National Human Rights Institutions (ICC) is the representative body of national human rights institutions ŅHRIs) and has

established a Sub Committee on Accreditation from among its members which then

accredits NHRis as being in compliance with the Paris Principles. Bristol University has

emphasised in its study "Relationship between Accreditation by the Intemational Coordinating Committeę of National Human Rifts lnstitutions and the optional Protocol to the TIN Convention Against Torture"ll that there should not be a presumption that because an institution is accredited by the ICC that it would make an effective or appropriate NPM under OPCAT (or a national framework under the Disability Convention). This is because of the manĪrer of the accreditatton process by the ICC, the

very specific way of working by the SPT, the nature of OPCAT and what it requires of NPMs, that particular functions are to be performed by the NPM which a NHRI may not be always able to fulfil. OPCAT does not spell out that it is national human rights institutions specificaliy that are to be NPMs. The drafters of the Protocol only made a

referencę to the Paris Principles but made no prescription that NHRIs, where available, must be NPMs. In some countries there may be no NHRIs, in some countries these,

despite their ICC accreditation status, might not be the most suited for the specific tasks under OPCAT.

8. Victim support compensation is paid to victims of violent crimes and the victim's dependents and the natural person, who bears the victim's medical expenses or funeral expenses. For the puņoses of this AcĻ a crime of violence is an act committed against the life or health of a person which is punishable pursuant to criminal procedure and as a

result of which the injured person: 1) dies; 2) sustains serious damage to his or her health; 3) sustains a health disorder lasting for at least six months.

An application for compensation (hereinafter application) shall be submitted to the

applicant's regional pension offrce of the Social Insurance Board within one year as of the commission of the crime or the date of death of the victim.

An application submitted later shall be reviewed if the dependant became awaĪe of the

death of the victim more than six months after the date of death and the application is submitted within one year as of the date of becoming aware of the death of the victim or the applicant for compensation sustained a health disorder which lasted longer than six months and timely submission of the application was not possible due to his or her state

of health and if the corresponding ņplication is submitted within one year as of his or her state of health improving.

,, Available online in English: http://www.bristol.ac'uk/law/research,/cęntres-themes/opcat/docs.html.

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Thus, if the victim of torture meets the conditions provided in the Victim Support Act, he/she may apply for victim support compensation from the state.

No separate statistics is collected regarding allocation of compensation in cases related to specifi c criminal offences.

Elimination of slaverv and servitude (arts. 8. 24)

9. General assessment on the success of the o'Development Plan for Trafficking in Human Beings 2006-2009'

Extract from the Final Report of the Development Plan (currently sent for approval to national authorities) :

The Development PT,an for the yeąrs 2006-2009 focused on estabTishing a cooperation network of experts deaTing with human trafficlcing, įncreased attentįon was paid to qssįstance of victims and training of professionals, whįch has contrįbuted to awareness- raising o,f human trfficking' As thįs deveTopment pTan was thefirst of its kįnd in thefieTd, įt įs understandabTe that emphasis was pTaced on the deveTopment o'f a cooperation network and that significant attentįon was paid to the training of peopTe who are thefirst contacst wįth vįctįms and the assįstance provided by them. In addįtįon, creating a wįder audįence on the issue of human trfficking and raising public awareness was deemed important. Įn thįs respect, Tectures, training sessions, seminars to pupiTs and to other target groups įll contact wįth the issue were carrįed out fs welT as awareness-raising actįvįtįes įn the medįf via newspaper inserts, information mrterįaTs, trade shows and radio programs.

During the years o'f the deveTopment plan significant changes have also taken pTace įn the ĮegisĮatiotl' At the end of 2009 the amendment to the PenaT Code was įnįtįated on estabTishing cT Separate paragraph on humfn n.afficking; įn 2007 the amendments entered into .force by which the vįctim of human tralficking may obtain a temporary residence permįt and the possibilities.for the vįctįm o.f human trfficking originating,from a foreign countī1l to appTy .for a temporąty Estonian resįdence permit for the course o.f the crįmįna| proceedings. ATT the amendments have aTso been necessary įn order to,fuTfiT the įnternationfT obTigations of Estonįa, one of which įncluded the signing o.f the CouncįI o,f Europe Conventįon on Actįon against Trafficking įn Human Beings' Estonįa signed the Convention on Februaņl 3, 20]0.

By the end of the period covered by the deveTopment pTan there are functioning sheļters for victims and a helpTine for the prevention of human trlficking operated by NGO Living For Tomorrow, These actįvitįes and servįces provided b), actors of the civil socieŅ ltave now been planned to receįve financing f om the state budget. In order to respond to human n.afficTcing CaSeS and to identify vįctims more ejficientTy a manuaT and guide materįals have been compiTed whįch have been submįtted to rTl the reTevant authorįtįes who come įn contact wįth vįctįms (the manual and guide materįaļs aT,so įncTude a Tist of contacts who the vįctįm may turn to.for assistalcce). Some studįes have aT,so been compTeted įn the.fieTd o.f human trffiching analysing the sįtuation įn Estonįa regarding the reasons for the demand for human trafficking,for the purpose o'f sexuaT expToitation, tlte awareness and fttįtudes of students of upper secondary schools and professįonal schooTs regarding human traficking fnd the

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attįtudes of the inhabįtants of Estonia towards prostitution and women įnvoĮved įn prostitution.

Sexual expToitation įs consįdered one of the .fo,*' of human trafficking, incTuding the

mediatįon of prostitutįon and aiding of prostitution. Human trfficking for the purposes of sexuaT expToitation and prostįtutįon are directTy lįnked. The characterįstįcs of human trafficking may aTso be found in medįated prostitution - įn case a person has been deceived into prostitutįon or a person hfs been deceįved regarding the conditions of working as a prostįtute; įf a person has been compeTTed to prostitute by force or threatening,, if a vulnerabTe condįtįon of a person į.e. socįaĮ, economįc and/or psychoTogicaT vuTnerabįTįŅ of a person has been taken advantage of with the fim to

expToit her/hįm in prostitutįon. The cases when a person įnvoTved in prostitutįon has started the activįtįes on her/hįs own initįatįve and is acting independentTy may not be regarded as human trafficking

Studįes have shown that pubTic attįtudes towards prostitution (2003 vs 2006) are continuousTy quite toTerant, every other Estonįan consįders brotheĮs necessaĪ?, į.e. more than 60?6 of men and aTmost a half of women are of the opinion, In addįtįon they admit that regarding prostitution they are not reaTTy aware of the actuql sįtuatįon of prostitutes or theįr lcrtowTedge on the matter is deficient. KnowTedge of Estonian peopTe about human trafficking has been quite poor, 4% of polTed Estonįans feTt that they are aware of the

characterįstics of the probTem.

The study on demand for human trafficking revealed that the maįn reasons for buying sex zs searching for something different and entertrinment, the buyers do not aclcrtowTedge the probTems of the women įmloTved in prostitutįon and the negative consequences of such actįvįties.

The repeated research study among upper secondary school pupiTs on awareness of human traficking (2002 vs 2007) reveaTed that there exįst some signs of improvement but young peopTe are stiTT not abTe to perceive the possibTe rįsks related to human trafficking (e.g. the possibiTity to faTT vįctįm of drudgety or sexuaT expToitation when traveĮĮing or studying abroad), ar not capabTe of standing up for theit. rights įn the Įabour market or fearing the grasp of crime, as ltuman traficking įs consįdered a fieTd whįch does not directly concern them.

As a concTusion we may consįder the deveTopment pTan successful as by trainings and information providing actįvįtįes conducted wįthįn the deveTopment pTan the awareness of the public on the issue of human traficking has been raįsed, the cooperation network of combating human trafficking is functioning and the cooperatįon between different organisations has improved, whįch therefore aTso ensures a more effective proceeding of human trafficking cases and the assisting of victims by different authorįtįes and organisations.

During the four years of the deveTopment pTan period almost 7 mįĮĮįon Estonįan ļcroons has been spent on the actįvįtįes the financing of which was foreseen įn the deveĮopment pTan instead of the pTanned 5 miTlion lcroons. For severaT Targer įnitįatįons, e.g. a hotlįne of advice and the įnįtįatįon of operation of sheTters and rehabįlįtatįon set"vįces regarding human trafficking the initiaT funding has been received through internatįonaĮ projects

from the European Commįssįon as weļI as the Nordįc countrįes but by now these

i8

financing scltemes have been tfken over by the strte and funding įs receįved from the state budget whįch is a vety significant ac]tįevment.

Victims of human traffrcking are entitled to medical, psycholo gi.cal, social and legal assistance. They are assisted by the shelters and services created by the Nordic Baltic Pilot project (services are being financed now by the Ministry of Social Affairs) and by the rehabilitation centre Atoll that was created in 2005 in the framework of the EU cooperation project EQUAL, titled "Integration of women involved in prostitution including victims of human trafficking into the legal labour market". In 2008, 55 female victims of human trafficking were identified and assisted, Īn2009,78. These specialised services are provided by NGOs, but financed by the state and local government. In addition, all persons who have fallen victim to negligence, mistreatment or physical, mental or sexual abuse, i.e. all those to whom suffering or injury have been caused, are entitled to victim support as stated in Victim Support Act. Compensation is also available for victims of crime. The Victim Support Act and the national Victim Support System are available also to victims of human trafficking.

In 2009 an analysis regardīng the need for a specific provision of ..human trafficking,, in the Penal Code, was conducted by the Ministry of Justice. As a result, in 2010 amendments to the Penaļ Code will be submitted to the parliament, according to which a specific provision of human trafficking offences is introduced. The amendments are under preparation in Ministry of Justice.

10. A residence permit may be issued to an aiięn who is victim or witness in a criminal procedure on a matter involving a criminal offence related to trafficking in human beings within the meaning of the Council Framework Decision 2002l629lTHA on combating trafficking in human beings and he or she makes the co-operation with the authorities. According to an Alien Act a Prosecutor's Office will inform an alien of the possibiiities and conditions for granting a residence permit. After that on the decision of the Prosecutor's Office will be given to an alien who is victim of trafficking a reflection period of 30 to 60 calendar days allowing him or her to recover and escape the influence of the peņetrators of the offences so that he or she can take an informed decision as to whether to cooperate with the competent authorities. A residence permit may be issued for up to 1 year. This does not preclude victims of trafficking from applying for residence permit on general grounds.

tr ibertr, and security ofpersons (arts. 9. 10)

L1. We will hereby refer to provosions of the relevant iaws on the rights of persons deprived of liberty.

(a) Access to an independent doctor and to a lawyer.

Įmprįsonment Ac| ģ 53, Treatment qf prįsoners (Į) The avaiĮability of emergency care twenĘt-four ltours a day shaTļ be guaranteed to prisoners. (2) Prisoners who need treatment whįch cannot be provided in prison shalT be referred to treqtment at reĮevant providers of speciaT.ised medįcaT care by the medįcaT fficer of the prison. Prįson servįce shrll ensure the guard of prisoners during the tįme when prisoners are provided wįth heaTth care sel.vįces.

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(3) The time during vvhich a prisoner is provided wįth heaTth care servįces shaĮl be įncĮuded in the prisoner,S sentence.

@) In case of a prisoner, who hfs inflicted įntentiona| self harm, the prison wįll have right of recourse to claimfrom the prisoner the sums spent on the prisoner'S hefĮth care.

(b) Abitįty to inform a relatįve.

The Constįtution ff the RepubTįc qf Estonįa $ 2} Everyone who is deprived of his or her TiberŅ shaTT be informed promptĮy, in a Tanguage and manner whįch he or she understands, of the reason for the deprivation of Tiberty and of his or her rights, and shrlT be given the opportuniŅ to notifi those closest to hįm or lter. A person suspected of a criminaT offence shaTT aTso be promptĮy given the

opportuniŅ to choose and confer wįtlt counsel. The right of a person suspected of a crimįnaT offence to notify tļtose cTosest to hįm or her of the deprivation of Įiberņ may be restrįcted onTy in the cases and pursuant to procedure provided by Taw to combat a crįmįna| offence or įn the įnterests of ascertaining the truth įn a criminaT procedure'

No one shaTļ be heļd įn custody for more than forŅ-eight hours wįthout the specific authorįsation of a court. The decįsįon of the court shaTT be promptTy communįcated to the

person in custody in a Tanguage and mąnner whįch he or slte understands'

Code ff CrįmįnaĮ Procedure

s 2]7. Detentįon of suspecf

Q0) A person detaįned aS a Suspect is given an opportuniŅ to notify at Įeast one person close to hįm or her at hįs or her cltoįce o,f his or her detentiotl through a body conducting proceedings. If the notification prejudices a crįmįnaļ proceeding, the

opportuniŅ to notify may be refused with the permįssįon of the Prosecutor,s ofice.

(c) Information concerning the charges brought against them

Code ff CrįmįnaĮ Procedure $ 8. Safeguarding of rights of participants inproceedings (]) Investigative bodįes, Prosecutors' offices and courts shall.. ļ) įn the performance of a proceduraļ act įn the cases provided by Įaw, expĮain the

objective of the act and the rights and obligations of the participants įn the proceeding to

the participants; 2) provide the suspect and the accused with a real opportuniŅ to defend themseļves,.

3) ensure the assįstance of a counseT to the suspect and the accused įn the cases provided for įn subsectįon 45 (2) of thįs Code or if such assistance is requested by the

suspect or the accused; 4) in cases of urgency, provide an arrested suspect or accused with other ĮegaĮ

assįstance at his or her request,. 5) deposit the unsupervised properŅ of an arrested suspect or accused with the

person or \ocaT government specified by him or her; 6) ensure that the minor chįTdren of an arrested person be supet"vised and the

DerSonS cTose to hįm or her who need assįstance be cared for.

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(d) Prompt presentation before a judge.

Code ff CrįminaT Procedure S269. Participation of accused įn court hearing Q) A crįmįnal matter shaTT be heard in the presence qf the accused. If the accused fails to appear, the court hearing shaT.l be adjourned. (2) As an exception, a criminal matter may be heard įn the absence of the accused if: ]) he or she has been removed from the courtroom on the basįs and pursuant to the procedureprovidedfor įn subsectįon 267 (T) ofthis Code; 2) he or she įs outsįde the territory of the RepubTic of Estonia and absconds court proceedings, and court hearing is possibTe without the hįm or her,' 3) after his or her interrogation at a court sessįon, the accused has caused himseT,f or herseĮf to be įn a state which precludes hįs or her participation in the court hearing, and court hearing is possibTe wįthout him or her; 4) it is compTįcated to take him or her to the court, qnd he or she has consented to participation įn the court hearing įn audįo-vįsualform pursuant to clause 69 (2) I) of this Code. (3) If the accused absconds court proceedings or if the hearing of the crįmįnaT matter is hįndered by a serious iĻTness of the accused' due to which. he or she įs not abTe to appear in court, the court may make a ruTing on tlte conduct of separate proceedings concerning hįs or her charges, adjourn the hearing of the severed charges until apprehension or recoyel)) of the accused, and cotltįnue the court hearing of the crįmįnal matters concerning the other accused. (4) Upon court hearing of a criminaT matter invoTving several accused persons, the hearing of those crįmįnal offences įncļuded įn the crįmįnaĮ matter whįch do not įnvoTve a specific accused may be conducted without the presence of such accused. and hįs or her crįminaĮ defence couns el.

Draft Law on Amendment of Penal Code, Code of Misdemeanour Procedure, Code of Criminal Procedure, Criminal Law, Punishment Register Act and Probation Supervision Act in the Parliament (Draft No 562 SE II-1)

Extract from the expT.anatory report:

one of the ainls o.f the draft įs to enabTe impositlg communiŅ servįce as substitutįve penaĮty įn case of misdemeanors.

According to the analysis conducted by the Ministrlt of Justice the repTacement o.f mįsdemeanour detentįon wįth community sel.vįce 'for the years 20]0-2013 wouTd be possibĮe įn case at ļefst 500 persons per year (]350 persons per year according to the estimates of the PoTice), the medįan Tength o,f the communiŅ set.vįce period couTd be 20 hours (10-day detentįon repTaced with 20 hours of communiŅ set"vice considering that one day of detention equaTs two hours of communiŅ service), The workļoad o.f arrest houses wouTd then be reduced by 3I-43% on account o.f the mįsdemeanor detentįons and by 4-5% with respect of the entįre workToad. Differences between the estįmates of the Ministty of Justice and the PoTįce are mainTy the resuTt o.f the probabiTiņ that not alT' persons who are punished with detentįon wįTT give their consent to do communiŅ set.vice whįch ruĮes out the appTication of communiŅ servįce in respect of them.

Draft Law on Amendment to the Code of Criminal Procedure and other Acts in the Pariiament GraftNo 599 SE II-1 )

2T

Extract from the expĮanatory report:

The main measures to achievethe goaĮs:

'io. n,,outįsh a Tegal remedy which may be appTied for during court proceedings,

particuTarly įn crįmįnaT proceedings įn order to compTy wįth the principTe of reasonabĮe Tength of proceedings.

14' Improve the provįsįons related to the principTe of continuįty of the criminaĮ court proceedings according to the needs occurred during the impTementatįon period of the

amendments of the Code of CrįmįnaT Procedure whįch entered into force ļ 5.07.2008.

(See answer to question ļ7- ContinuiŅ of the court hearings)

12. As we have already stated in the paragraph 2t9 of the report of the State party that the

iiving conditions of prisoners have improved signrficantly due to the reform of the prison system. Out of five prisons operating in Estonia in 2010 already two are new cell type prisons (Tartu Prison opened in 2002 and Viru Prison opened in 2008). In addition, in 2013 a new building for the Tallinn Prison will be ready, which signifies that all the

prisons in Estonia have new buiidings. As well, changes in the principles of being released on parole were implemented in 2007 along with the possibility of applying eļectronic surveillance. After restoration of independęnce the number of prisoners in Estonian prisons amounted to 4,800. In 2007 the number of prisoners decreased considerably, reaching the lowest level in the iast 16 years, l,.ę, 3,46] .In 2010 the number is 3507.

13. The practical impact of the Supreme Court decisions mentioned inparagraph2T0 of the

report of the State party are the foilowing:

1) Administrative matter 3-3-1-2-06: This case is extensively used as a reference by the

administrative courts in their judgments. 2) Administrative matter 3-3-1-103-06: The Imprisonment Act was amended with $ 29 (2t), which states thatthe prison shall examine with whom the prisoner is corresponding via letters and telephone calls. In case of telephone calls, the prison has the right to

register the given name and surname of the person or the name of the institution that the

prisoner is calling, and the time and duration of the call. In case of letters, the prison has the rift to register the given name and sumame of the person or the nįTme of the

institution that the prisoner is writing to, and the address and time of sending of the ietter.

According to the Constitution of the Republic of Estonia $ 43 prison is not allowed to

read the contents of the letters of prisoners, nor listen to the contents of the phone-calls unlike in many other European countries. 3) Administrative matter 3-3-I-20-07: The Imprisonment Act was amended with 5 311

which states that a prisoner shall not be allowed to use the Internet, except via computers configured for this puņose by the prison, allowing access to the official databases of legal acts and the registry of judicial decisions under supervision of the prison. One of such a registry of judicial decisions is HUDOC, the database of the judgments of the

European Court of Human Rights and the database of the decisions of the Supreme Court of Estonia. As well the Official Journal for the legal acts of Estonia.

Measures taken to ensure that detainees have easy access to complaints mechanįsms and can obtain compensation for abuses of their rights

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Detainees have easy access to complaints mechanisms and they can obtain compensation of their rights. Every legal act or procedure of the prison can be a subject to complaint procedure, either through the challenge procedure (vaidemenetTus) andlor administrative court procedure (haTduskohtumenetTus). In addition the prisoners can claim moral and non-moral damage under the State Responsibility Act (riigivastutusmenetlus). In addition, the prisoners can complain as well to the Legal Chancellor, who carries the Ombudsman function. For example in 2008 40% of all the cases of the Tartu Administrative court were brought by prisoners and in Tailinn Administrative court the relevant number was 75Yo. This illustrates that prisoners have easy access to justice and they are using it. In addition, the prisoners can get advice on where and when to complain. The advice is given by prison workers, who deal with everyday matters of prisoners (insp e ct or-kont alcti s ik) .

Information on the measures taken against officials who have violated the rights of detainees. Disciplinary procedures taken against officials :

- In 2008: 65 disciplinary procedures were commenced against prison officials, out of which 26 ended with a warning, one official was fired and for one person the prison decreased the saiary as a punishment. - In 2009: 70 disciplinary procedures were commenced against prison officials, out of which 21 ended with a warning, for five officials the service relationship was ended and for four officials the salary was decreased as a punishment. Seven procedures are still ongoing.

Information on criminal procedures taken against officįals: - In 2008: there were no criminal procedures. - In 2009: there were 5 criminal procedures commenced based on Criminaļ Law Act $ 291. In Tarfu Prison one procedure was ended, because of lack of evidence. In the other case the prison official was punished with an imprisonment. One procedure in Taliinn Prison and two procedures in Viru Prison are still ongoing.

14. The problem with overcrowding of detention houses, which had impact on detained people living conditions, has been decreasing throuf construction of new detention houses and creation of additional detention facilities. In 2008 a new detention house in Jõhvi was opened and Kohtla-Järve detention house was ciosed down. in 2009 a new sobering-up station for alcohoļ-users was opened in Tallinn, as a result additional spaces in detention houses appeared. For better management of detention houses spaces, procedures to distribute people between detention houses have been simplified (related amendments in lmprisonment Act entered into force in 2008). Living conditions in detention houses vary to some extent. ln the detention houses where living conditions are on a lower level and walking in the open air cannot be facilitated, people are heid for a shorter time in conducting proceedings. Systematically, within iimited budget conditions, old detention houses aIe renovated and new detention houses are planned. 20O] Põiva detention house renovations were performed. All the Estonian detention houses follow the principle of secure separation of convicted and accused persons and juvenile and adult detainees.

Please see also answer to question 7.

Z'

Freedom of movement (arts. 2. 1-2. 23)

15. Estonia recognizes marriages, not partnerships. According to Family Law Act a marriage is contracted between a man and a woman. A temporary residence permit may be issued to an alien to settle with his or her spouse who resides in Estonia perĪnanently and who is an Estonian citizen or to settle with his or her spouse who is an alien who has resided in Estonia for at least two years on the basis of a permanent residence permit if the spouses share close economic ties and a psychological relationship, if the family is stable and the marriage is not fictitious, and if the application for a residence permit is justified.

An alien who wants to apply for a residence perĪnit and he or she is in same-sex relationship and him or her partner already reside in Estonia, oan not rely on family migration. An alien who is in same-sex relationship and him or her partner already reside in Estonia, has to apply a residence permit on other grounds e.g. legal income (a residence permit may be issued, on the condition that a person's legal income ensures his or her subsistence).

The number of aliens who can settie in Estonia is limited. The annual immigration quota is the quota for all aliens immigrating to Estonia which shall not exceed 0.1 per cent of the permanent population of Estonia annually. The immigration quota does apply to the following:

aliens who apply residence permit for employment; aliens who apply residence permit for business; aliens whose permanent legal income ensures his/ her subsistence in Estonia; aliens whose application for residence permit is based on an international agreement.

Expulsion of aliens (art. 1-3)

16. $ 18 of the Act on Granting International Protection to Aliens regulates the review of application for asylum. According to this section 2 of ihis paragraph each application for asylum shall be reviewed individually and impartially. Also the correctness of provided evidence and information shall be verified and the credibility of the statements made by the applicant shall be assessed. tn addition the existence of circumstances which would lead to granting of international protection or rejection of application for asylum shall be assessed. For that puņose procedural acts shallbe performed.

The authority responsible for review of ņplication for asylum determines a safe country of origin and a safe third country and verifies if the asyium applicant can be sent to the said countries.

ln the process of reviewing an application for asylum, the applicant is provided with an opportunity to present, oraliy or in written form, facts and give explanations, in person, concerning circumstances which may have essential importance in the review of his or her appiication for asylum, including the circumstances which may prevent the applicant's expulsion from the country.

Articles 25 and 26 of the Act on Granting International Protection to Aliens regulate the decision to reject an application for asylum and compulsory execution of a precept to leave. When a decision is made to reject the application of asylum, the decision shall be prepared in writing. If the alien does not have a legal basis for staying in Estonia, a

.AL-t

precept to leave Estonia shall be issued by the decision to reject the application for asyium. The person has a right to an effective remedy, thus the decision to reject an application for asylum and to expel an alien may be eontested with an administrative coufi. According to the Act on Granting International Protection to Aliens contestation of the decision to reject an ņplication for asylum does not postpone expulsion, unless the court has suspended the execution of the precept to leave. In practice court has always suspended the execution of the precept to leave, if the decision to reject an application for asylum has been contested. There are only three grounds which are subject to immediate execution, i.e the alien is expelled from Estonia pursuant to procedure proved for in the Obligation to Leave and Prohibition on Entry Act without prior permission of an administrative court.

The three bases to refuse the person's entry into Estonia are the following: - another country can be considered the principal asylum country from the point of

view of the applicant, i.e. asylum of other protection has been accorded to the applicant in another country, and such protection is still accessible to the appiicant;

- there is reason to consider the applicant's country of origin a safe country of origrn;

- the applicant has arrived in Estonia through a country which can be considered a safe third country.

Rįeht to a fair trial (art.14)

17. Recent changes to Code o'f Crįmįnfl Procedure. entered into force 15,07 .2008 _ concern the measures to prevent delays in criminal proceedings.

€ ] 5] . The contįnuitv and immedįacv o.f court hearįng The court shalT hear the case įn its entįreŅ and ensure reaching a decįsįon as fast as possibĮe.

Ģ ]63ļ. Summonįng to coun^; court in generaT procedure (Į) Įn generaĮ proceedings of a criminaT matter in counŅ court the parņ to the court proceedings who requests the interrogation of a wįtness įn court has to organise the summoning of the wįtness, (2) Įn generaĮ proceedings of a crįminaT' matter in counŅ court the summoning of the vįctįm, the cįvįl defendant, the third. person and their representatįves įs organised by the Prosecutor's Office. (3) Įn general proceedings of a criminaT mftter in counŅ court the summoning of the accused is organised b1t the counsel or the Prosecutor's Office pursuant to the agreement reached during preliminar1l hearįng. If an ag"eement įs not reached' the Prosecutor's office shaTT organįse the summoning. @) The Court shrTT įssue the summons to the parties o'f the court proceedings at theįr request during the preTiminaly hearing, ltoting on the Summons the data Tįsted in s 163 sectįon I of this Code. In the Space regarding information about fficiaT titTe and details o,f the person issuing the summons the court shaļT wrįte the data of the parŅ of the court proceedings. (5) The court shaTļ įssue to the counseT at hįs request.from the popul,ation register the address of the person who įs summoned to the court at the request of the counseT.

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(6) A witness shaTl be served the summons by a parŅ to the court proceedings or on hįs request by a third person. (7) If the ProsecTļtor,S offi,ce performs the dutįes prescribed įn thįs sectįon the rights provided in ģ 2}3, paragraph I, subparagraph 5 and I0 of this CodewįTT extend to him. The Prosecutor's Ofiice has the right to independently summon other persons whose participation has been decįded in a preĮiminary hearing.

f 265] . Contįnuįng qf a preTįmįnalfl hearįng bv court hearįng (]) The hearing of a criminaļ matter sent to court pursuant to the generaT procedure may take pTace immediately after the preTiminaty hearing if īt is possibTe for aĮĮ persons invoTved įn the case to appear to court for the preTiminaty hearing if it would ensure the continuiŅ and įmmediacy of the court proceedings and if the parties and the court give their consent. (2) The parties to the court proceedings and the court may agree on the court hearing taking pTace įmmedįately after the preliminaty hearing before the preTiminaty hearing or at the preĮiminary hearing. (3) In the case specified įn thįs section the victįm, civiT defendant, the third person, their representatįves ond the accused wiļl be summoned' to the court by the Prosecutor's office pursuant to sectįons ļ63-]69 of this Code'

€ 268]. Prohįbįtįon on hearįng muTtįpTe crįmįnal matters at the srme time (]) The members of the panel of the counŅ court hearing the crįmįnaĮ matter sent to

court pursuant to the generaT procedure may not take part in the court hearing of an other crįminal mattel. Sent to court pursuant to generaT procedure before a decįsįon hfs been made in thefirst matter. (2) The court may derogate from paragraph ], in the foĮĮowing cases: 1) the hearing of the crįmįnaT matter must be unavoįdabTy postponed for more than one month in the cases Tįsted in paragraph 3 of the current sectįon and the hearing of the

other crįmįnaT matter wįTl not prevent the contįnuing of the hearing of the postponed matter pursuant to $ T5' of the cunent Code; 2) in the crįmįnfT matter sent to court later a person įs accused of committing an offence as q mįnor; 3) in the crimįnaT matter sent to court later arrest has been applied as preventive measure in case of the rccused in a first degree offence and the court consįders įt necessary to contįnue the application of the preventive measure. 4) with the aįm to join the case wįth the case previously accepted into proceedings.' 5) in the crįminal matter sent to court Tater the court hearing wįĮl be initiated pursuant to

265ļ of the current Code. (3) In the case specified in subparagraph I of paragraph 2 of the current sectįon the

hearing of an other crįmįnal matter may be įnįtįated if the court hearing of the previousĮy įnįtįated crimįnal matter has been postponed on rt Teast one of the foĮTowing grounds..

T) in connectįon wįth the Tonglerm įllness of a summoned person if hearing the matter wįthout his presence is not possįbĮe,. 2) the accused has not appeared at the court hearing, hįs summoning is not possibĮe within a reasonabĻe tįme and there exist no grounds as provided in $ 269 of the current Code to hear the matter wįthout his presence; 3) internationaT TegaT assistance must be used įn the coTTecting of evidence įn the criminal matter; 4) expertise has been ordered įn the crįminaĮ matter.

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Admissibi|iŅ to illegally obtained evidence įn criminal proceedings

The matter is covered by the Code qf Crįminfl Procedure ā

Ģ 64. GeneraT condįtįons,for coT\ectįon qf evįdence (]) Evįdence shalT be coļļected įn a manner whįch įs not prejudiciaT to the honour and digniŅ of the persons participating in the coTlection of the evįdence, does not endanger their Tife or heflth or cause unjustified proprietary damage. Evįdence shaļT not be coiTļected by torturing a person or using vįoTence against hįm or her įn any other manner, or by means affecting a person,S memory capaciŅ or degrading his or her human digniŅ, (2) If it is necessa|y to undress ą person įn the course of a search, physicaT examįnatįon or taking of comparatįve materįaT, the olficiaT of the investigative body, the prosecutor and the participants įn the proceduraT act, except heaļth care professįonfļs andforensic pathoTogįsts, shalT be of the Same Sex as the person. (3) If technicaT equipment įs used įn the course of coTTection of evįdence, the participants in the procedural act shalT be notified thereof in advance and the objective of using the technįcal equipment shaTl be expTained to them. (4) Investigative bodįes and Prosecįļtors, offices may invoTve impartiaT speciaTists in the coĮTectįon of evidence and the specialists may be heard as witnesses. (5) If necessaly, participants įn a proceduraT act shalT be u,arned that pursuant to s 2l4 of this Code dįscTosure of informatįon reTating to pre-trial proceedings is prohibited. (6) The generaT condįtįons for the coTTectįon qf evidence b)l sur.veįTĻance actįvįtįes are Įįsted in $$ 1] 0_I I2 of this Code.

ģ 6]. EvaTuatįon o,f evįdence (ļ) No ellįdence has predetermined weįght. (2) A court shalT evaluate rTT evįdence įn the aggregate according to the conscįence of the judges.

18. The Ministry of Finance appoints compensation under the Compensation for Damage Caused by State to Person by Unjust Deprivation of Liberty Act. Pursuant to the procedure provided for by the Act, the following persons shall be compensated for darnage caused by unjust deprivation of liberty: 1) persons who were held in custody with the permission of a court and criminal proceedings in whose matters were terminated at the stage of pre-trial investigation or in a preliminary hearing or persons with regard to whom a judgment of acquittal has entered into force; 2) persons who were detained on suspicion of a criminal offence or released when the suspicion ceased to exist; 3) persons who were held in prison and whose judgment of conviction has been annulled and criminal proceedings in whose matters were terminated or persons with regard to whom a judgment of acquittal has been made; 4) persons whose period of imprisonment has exceeded the term of the punishment which was imposed on the person; 5) persons with regard to whom unfounded coercive psychiatric treatment has been ordered by a court in connection with the commission of an unlawful act provided for in the Penal Code provided that a court ruling made with regard to such person has been annulled; 6) persons who served detention provided that the judgment ordering detention has been annulled;

z1

7) persons who were unjustly deprived of liberty by a decision of an offrcial authorised to deprive of liberty or without conducting disciplinary proceedings, misdemeanour proceedings or criminal proceedings if such proceedings were compulsory.

Between the years 2003 and 2OO9-compensation has been paid as follows: 2003 - 106 persons; in the amount of 3 797 094 lvoons; 2004- 77 persons;intheamount of 2284775 Įcroons;

2005 - 70 persons; in the amount of 217ļ 482lcroons; 2006 - 57 persons; in the amorrrrt of l 824 564 Įcroons;

2001 - 71 persons; in the amount of 4 018 5S2lcroons; 2008 - 63 persons; in the amount of 3 249 926lcroons; 2009 - 81 persons; in the amount of 4 009 240 lcroons.

Freedom of relįgion and equal protection (arts. 1-8.26)

L9. The Ministry of Defence has initiated the procedure of decreasing the duration of alternative

service and the draft amendment has already been sent to the Parlament (Amendment of Defence Forces Service Act $ 3), which will require amending the fust sentence of section 74 and reads as follows: ,,The duration of altemative service must not be longer than 12 months and less than 8 monüls...

Rįeht to peaceful assemblv (art.21)

20.In relation to 26-28.04.2001 events, North Police prefecture started 8 criminal proceedings regarding allegations of ilļ-treatment of demonstrators by law enforcement officials. A1l of these crimūalproceedings are dismissed on the bases $2001 (termination of criminal proceedings due to faiiure to identify person who committed criminal offence).

21,Thę organisation of a meeting, parade or any other event is regulated by the Pubiic Gatherings Act. According to this act the restrictions on any public gathering may be imposed oniy on grounds of national security, public order, morality, traffic safety and granting the security of the participants in the meeting and to prevent the spread of contaious desease. Law enforcement authorities have never refused to provide consultations to Tallinn Pride management how to fulfi1 those obligations. Limitations to the organisation of meetings are allowed if there is basis to believe that meeting may endanger law and order, traffic safety and participants. In 2006 and 2007 Tallinn Pride management board was provided with written recoilrmendations. After consultations with the organisers and slight modification of the route of the parade tn 2007 the permission for the event was granted in due time. Specifyng obligations, rights and competencies of orgarizing public meetings, project of new public order act has been eiaborated, which is under iegislative proceedings in The Parliament of the Estonia.

Freedom of association and right to take part in the conduxt of public affairs (arts. 22.25.27\

22. White the prohibition on strike for state officiais will remain in force, the new Pubiic Servicę Act (draft) will considerably restrict the circle of officials providing that a state

official is only a person who executes public authority at his post, i.e. performs the followins functions:

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1) Administration of a state agency; 2) Exercising state, administrative and official supervisory control, and conducting

internal audit; 3) Substantive guaranteeing of national security; 4) Substantive preparation of the administration ofjustice; 5) The application of coercive measures; 6) The representation of state prosecution and its substantive preparation; 1) Extrajudicial misdemeanour proceedings; 8) Diplomatic representation of the state; 9) Preparation of poiicy-shaping decisions in the area of govenrment of a ministry or

Government of the Republic as an organ.

Persons who are employed by the state or local government but do not perform the above functions such functions are not considered as state officials, and the prohibition on strike does not apply to them. At the same time $ 21 section 1 of the Collective Labour Dispute Resolution Act still applies according to which strikes are prohibited in govemment and other state agencies and local governments.

23.In order to guarantee national security persons with undetermined citizenship who are long-term residents or third country nationals are not granted the right to belong to political parties or the right to work in pubiic service. The granting of such rights to European Union citizens is based on the principle of free movement of EU citizens.

Right to participate in political parties Only Estonian citizens and European citizens resident in Estonia have the right to become members of political parties (Estonian Political Parties Act).

Right to take part in pubiic life o Non-citizens residing in Estonia on the basis of a long-term residence permit or with

the right of permanent residence have the right to vote at local elections (Local Govemment Council Election Act).

o Non-citizens are not allowed to vote on national referenda (i.e. amendments to the general provisions of the Constitution of Estonia or other national issues) (Referendum Act).

o There are no other restrictions conceming the rifts of non-citizens residing in Estonia to take part in public life.

Right to attain senior positions in public services According to $ 30 of the Estonian Constitution: ofices įn state agencies and local governments shalĮ be fiTTed by Estonian cįtizens, on the basis of and pursuant to procedure establįshed by Tau,. These ofiices may, aS an exception, be fiTTed by citizens of foreign states or stateTess persotxs, įn accordance wįth T.rw.

According to the requirements set in the Estonian Public Service Act, only Estonians citizens as well as other EU-citrzens to a limited scale (exciuding positions related to the exercise of public authority and the protection of public interest) are given access to positions in public services.

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Non-discrimination. equalifv before the law and rįghts of the child (arts.2(t\.24.26,27\

24.Dunng the years 2005-2009 section 152 of the Penal Code (violation of equality) has not been applied by national courts.

25. Although according to the provision of the Citizenship Act to a minor under 15 years old can apply Estonian citizenship by a simpiified procedure, not all the parents are aware of their rights and options. Thereforę, in 2007 an active explanatory campaign was initiated aimed at reducing the number of children with undetermined citizenship. The target groTTp is minors with undetermined citizenship as of their birth. At present finding more efficient ways of information division as well as finding possibilities for creating a

system for people of undetermined citizenship to receive personal counselling is being pianned. The personal approach includes also e.g. conversations of officials of the

Citizenship and Migration Office with the parents of children with undetermined citizenship. Also a personai letter signed by the Minister of the Interior wiļl be submitted to the parents of children with undetermined citizenship, in which all the possibilities to

apply for citizenship are explained. This approach has received very positive feedback and also raised the pace ofnaturalisation ofunder 15- year-old children.

In 2009 the project "Development of data-sharing between the Citizenship and Migration Board and the Population Register" was launched, which was aimed at obtaining data on all children born in Estonia and their parents and on the basis of this information the parents of newborn children are informed of the need to legalise the residence of their children in Estonia. Under the piect it is planned to explain to parents that they have the

opportunity to apply for Estonian citizenship for their child during the child's first year without the necessity to first apply for residence permit or the rift of residence for the child.

In addition briefings have been taking place in Russian-Iangtage schools as of October 2008. During the briefings bulletins introducing the advantages of Estonian citizenship are distributed and the possibilities to obtain Estonian citizenship are explained to

different age groups. The distribution of information is planned to take place in 61

schools. Children under 15 years make up 40o/o of all applicants of citizenship and there are relatively no refusals to grant citizenship in such cases. Thus, mostiy all children under the age of 15 receive Estonian citizenship whose parents have decided to apply for it for them. There have only been a few cases in which the proceedings of the application have had to be terminated because the child was not released from his current citizenship.

Due to the above reasons the number of children with undetermined citizenship aged

under 15 has been steadily decreasing. In 2005 there were 6451 such children, whereas according to data of 30"' of July of 2009 the number had by that time already decreased to 2305.

As concerns the persons who have obtained citizenship other than Estonian, pursuant to

the Citizenship Act an Estonian citizen may not at the same time have the citizenship of another state, i.e. citizens of other countries may obtain Estonian citizenship only in case

they are released from their current citizenship. No special measures have been taken to encoTTrage the citizens of other countries to choose Estonian citizenship in place of their current citizenshio.

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26. Langtage Inspectorate shall exercise supervision over the implementation of the Lan8uage Act and in their work they rely on the law, good management practice and strategic documents such as the Ministry of Education and Research development plan "Wise and active nation" 2008-2011 and Estonian Langaage Development Strategy 2004-2010.

There are currently 22 officials working in the Langaage Inspectorate, i 1 of them work as inspectors. Every year the Langaage Inspectorate publishes an annual activity report which reflects the number of control visits carried out and the warnings and precepts issued during the year.

In 2007 in all 3115 inspection reports were composed during the monitoring of the impĮementation of the Language Act, of them in 3029 cases a violation of the requirements of the Language Act was found. During primary inspections 1482 reports were composed, in 1292 of thęm a vioiation of the Langlage Act was established. During the follow-up inspections 1633 reports were composed (1552 on the inspection of language skills and 81 on inspection on the compliance with the requirements of Estonian language use). In 2008 in all 2562 inspection reports were composed during the monitoring of the implementation of the Language Act, of them in 2402 cases a violation of the requirements of the Language Act was found. During primary inspections 1120 reports were composed, in 955 of them a violation of the Langaage Act was established. During the follow-up inspections t442 reports were composed (1104 on the inspection of language skills and 338 on inspection on the compliance with the requirements of Estonian language use)".

All the inspection visits are priorly approved by the Ministry of Education and Research, the institutions to be visited are informed in due time and inspection of documents is carried out before the visit to affirm the number of workers in the institution to whom the requirement of language proficiency applies and how many of them lack the relevant language certificate. In this context, the Government would like to ctariff that the high number of violations found by the Langtage Inspectorate is the resuit of the fact that mainly the institutions concerning which information has been received on possible incompliance with Estonian ianguage profi ciency requirements.

Supervision over the Language Inspectorate is exercised by the minister of education and science. When exercising supervision a minister may annul the legisiation and legal acts of the executive authorities. Heads of state executive authorities exercise supervision over regional offices of an institution or inspectorate and their officials pursuant to the rules and to the extent set by the minister.

In addition the legal acts of the Language Inspectorate may be contested in the administrative court; issues concerning fundamental rights may be addressed to the Chancellor of Justice and issues related to discrimination may be addressed to the the Gender Equality Commissioner.

12 Further information about the activities of Language lnspectorate is available in website -

http://www.keeleinsp.ee/?menu=30&news=5 13

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Integration programme reports and monitoring of integration

Estonian integration prograrnme 2008-2013 also includes summary of the

implementation of the previous national programme "Integration in the Estonain society in 2000-2007". The target groups of the present integration policy have primarily been ethnic groups or some specific groups - in particular, persons with undetermined citizenship and social risk groups, aiso children and young people. Given the complexity of the whole integration process and the differences that have arised during the recent years among the national groĪ,Tps of different monther tongue in their social status and

degree of integration, it is appropriate to differentiate the whole integration progrįļIĪrme and to define more accurately the target groups of the measures taken in different fields. However the needs of the different age groļ,Tps, nationalities, level of education, residence, social and professional positions must be therefore taken into account and their roles in the integration process. In thę report published tn2006 the implementation of the

integration progralnme 2000-2001 was assessed regarding two aspects.

The puņosed implementation of the planned activities and positive feedback of the

beneficiaries received the highest evaluation. A more critical evaiuation was given to the

implementation of the strategy and its efficiency as a whole regarding the achieving of the most important aims - the language proficiency leve1 of aduit non-Estonians, the

increasing of the common ground of the Estonian and Russian information field and the

existence of a suffrcient amount of competent teachers at all levels. There were fields mentioned in the report in which achievements were made but at the same time significant aspects were raised which require more attention. Of the four subprogrammes only the implementation of the measures plarured to develop the culture and language of the ethnic minorities received the rating "good". The rest of the subprogtammes - "Education", "Adult language training" and "Society competence" - as well as the progratnme as a whole received the rating "fail". As an achievement the language immersion prograrnme was highlighted, as well as the elaboration and implementation of extracurricular language training prograĪnmes (oint projects of ianguage leaming).

Recommendations for the elaboration of a new development plan included the preparation of competent ianguage teachers, improved arrangement of activities, the need

to inciude more people whose mother tongue is not Estonian into civil society activities and into establishing a coĪĪrmon information field.

It was recofitmended to extend successful initiations by setting priorities and making the

necessary decisions on the strategical level. Though in the process of the implementation of the programme the target groĪ.Tps were specified, a subsequent analysis is still needed,

in particular to elaborate appropriate techniques and principies to reach those target groups. An importanttarget group, loval governments, were not sufficientiy included in the development plan. Several recommendations were also made regarding how the

management level should be improved and made more efficient.

Practical results of the progrįįmmes may be assessed on the basis of the study on monitoring of integration, which was last conducted in 2008. We hereby briefly introduce the results of the study.

l. GeneraT trends Compared to the previously carried out monitorings (2000,2002,2005) the indicators of the structural integration of the Estonian society have been improving step-by-step - this

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applies to the Estonian language proficiency, the share of Estonian citizens in the population as well as several other socio-economic indicators. At the same time several indicators reflecting the attitudes of people have deteriorated - e.g. the trust of Russian- speaking population in the Estonian state and institutions has decreased, the share of respondents of the Russian-speaking population who consider themselves as part of the Estonian population has decreased etc. At the same time the Estonians continue to be resistant to including Russian-speaking population in the public sphere.

The trend analysis indicates that as until the year 2005 the attitudes concerning integration had become more positive, a significant drop has taken place since then. This may be explained by the politisation of the national relations in the recent years, which has intensified the controversial attitųdes towards integration - both sides regard integration not in the framework of development of the society as a whole but primarily in the framework of requirements and expectations towards the other side. The monitoring confirms that for the Estonians the priorities are language requirements and the issue of citizenship as the Russian-speaking population places significant importance on social aims and mutual dialogue. This gives rise to several different concepts of equal treatment, mutual tolerance, the motives of the other side and the assessment of aims etc. Such polarisation of national groļļps indicates that the opportunities for the state to influence the substantive integration of the society are decreasing.

2. Estonįan- and Russian speaking popuTation's materiaT Status and Tife satis.faction Differences in incomes of the Estonian- and Russian-speaking population have somewhat decreased in the course of time. The existing differences in incomes are mainly the result of the significantly lower representation of Russians with higer education in the group of largest incomes, which indictates their hindered access to the highiy paid positions. The assessments of the Estonian citizens regarding their personal material possibiiities are relatively similar regardless of their ethnicity, differing significantly from the assessments of non-citizens. Assessments on possibilities of Estonians and the Russian- speaking popuiation differ by nationality which refers to ethnic solidarity within the ethnic group.

3. Educftįott The transition to Estonian-language higher education has on a large scale changed the Russian-language education into an educationaļ impasse as the opportunities of a Russian-speaking high school or gynnasium graduate arę limited, This ņplies mainly to these Russian-speaking young people whose language proficiency is not sufficient to continue the studies in Estonian-language higer education institutions.The Russian- speaking population feels that next to the advantages of the transition to partia! Estonian- speaking language instruction in schools there are also a number of significant risks (assimiiation, the deterioration of the examination results of pupils in Russian schools, and as a result aiso the inequality regarding fuither educational opportunities compared to pupils of Estonian schools, Russian young people emigrating). At the same time it is considered that the partial transition to Estonian language instruction should take place significantly sooner than it is at the moment (prefenably already in pre-school institutions or in primary schools at the latest). Such pre-school institutions in which all children are taught together but where therę are assistant teachers speaking the language of chiTdren with different mother tongues are strongly supported. Therefore there are no negative attitųdes of the Russian-speaking population towards teaching of Estonian. Their fears have mainly been induced by the poorly prepared transition to the partial Estonian language instruction in schoois.

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4. Language skilĮs The Estonian language skills of the Russian-speaking population have gradually improved over the Ļast 20 years and has become functionally diverse - the self- expression-, writing and reading skills have improved. However two trends should be distinguished - first, the intergative significance of the Estonian langaage, which peaked in 2005, has strongly dropped by this time, i.e. learning the Estonian language is not considered sufficient to achieve mutual trust and an equal position compared to the

Estonians (respectively only 38o/o and 23o/o of the respondents agree that tt will increase trust and enables to obtain equal position). On the other hand the utilitary significance of the Estonian language learning has preserved and strenftened - people feel that the

Estonian language is needed to preserve-obtain a (good) job.

Therefore the integration policy should mainly stress the instrumental values of Estonian language leaming (better education and professional opportunities) and in the integration process an emphasis should mainly be placed on political and socio-economical integration.

5. Inter-ethnįc communicatįon and rttitudes Contacts of the Estonians and Russian-speaking population have been relatively restricted

- among Estonians about a third of them have random casual contacts with the Russian- speaking population, among the Russian-speaking population about a half has an

everyday experience in communicating with Estonians. The inter-ethnic communication mainly takes place in the professional sphere, the extraprofessional communication networks are mostly nationality-centered.

Among attitudes towards different national groups, measured by the wiilingness to share personal space with them, the signrficantly resistant attitudes of Estonians emerge. Both among the Russian-speaking as well as the Estonian-speaking population the resistent attitudes are more colĪImon in the younger age gloup, also among inhabitants of Tallirrn. There is a connection between the frequency of personal contact and attitudes:the

attitudes are more positive in case of persons who have closer contacts with the other national goup, that is in particular the case in case of Estonians. Different national groups perceive national relations differently - only Il3 of the

Estonians find that the Russians living in Estonia are loyal to the Estonian state and

support its development, whereas most of the Russian-speaking respondents (80%) find its national group is loyal to the Estonian state. As most of the Russian-speaking inhabitants consistentiy believe that the integration in the Estonian socieŅ also needs the

willingness and efforts of the Estonians, at the same time the proportion of Estonians of that opinion has decreased nearly 20Yo d:unng the iast 8 years (from 80% to 6t%).In the

opinion of the Estonians the differences in the lifestyles of the Estonians and the Russians have decreased (in 2000 6l% thought there were differences, whereas already 49o/o was of the opinion in 2008), in the opinion of the Russians the differences have increased (from 42o/oto 57%).

Analysis concerning the attitudes related to ethnic relations confirms that the most important target groups of the integration policy should be young Russian-speaking people, people with undetęrmined citizenship and the residents of Tallinn. The Estonians should become more aware of the need and opportunities to actively participate in the

integration process.

6. Information and medįa use

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Poor orientation in the situation in the neighbourhood, in Estonia or in the world is expressed, in particular, by the Russian-speaking respondents who are less educated and of lower status, among who many do not follow the Estonian media and in the promotion of informing of who printed media is of little use. However, plenty can be done by a Russian television channel.A Russian-langļagę television channel would be essential in the context of improved access to everyday practical information. A great need for such a channel has been expressed by over 70% of Russian-speaking population, the majority of the Estonians are also on the understanding position.

7. Citizenship There have been significant changes in the preferences of citizenship during the years 2000-2008. When as of 2000 the preference of Estonian citizenship shows a significant growing trend, which peaked in 2005 (74%), in the year 2OO8 only half (5t%) of non- citizens wished to have Estonian citizenship. When in 2000 160/o on non-citizens wished for no citizenship of any country and by 2005 their share had dropped to 7%o, in 2008 their share has raised again to the initial level of 160/o, Whęn in 2000 5o/o warfted Russian citizenship and ll% in 2005, then in 2008 aiready t8% of respondents with undetermined citizenship wished for Russian citizenship.

The attitudes of Estonians towards the expansion of the circle of citizens by a simplified procedure have also changed over time. When in 2000 18% of Estonians were not wilting to give arry target group citizenship by simpiified procedure, then in 2008 the share of such respondents had droppedto 8Yo.46%o of F.stonians approve granting of citizenship to people bom in Estonia by simplified procedure.

The analysis indicates that the division of the Russian-speaking population to Estonian citizens, persons with undetermined citizenship and citizens of Russia (and other states) reflects in particular their different degree of adaptabiiity and different survival strategies in the Estonian society. Estonian citizenship is acquired by those who are active and adaptive by their personal characteristics. Thus, the Estonian Citizenship Act has in a way acquired the role of intensiĄling 'natural selection' providing more opporhrnities for the more capable and diminishing the opporfunities of those who are less competitive in nature.

The educated Russian-speaking people with Estonian citizenship have a strenghtening position in the labout market and their high selįesteem increases their justified expectations to have more say in the Estonian society. When this expectation is not met, it will strenften the distrust and protest identity spreading įįmong the Russian-speaking population. Therefore the more efficient inclusion of the naturalised citizens is an essential aim of the integration policy.

8. ,,Us-feeTing', and state identiŅ Most potential for creating a population-connecting "us-feeling" exists in building it on local identity. Better prospect for creating state identity exists also when initiated on regional level. The state identity of Russian-speaking population is strongiy affected by their ethnic identity and historical ties with Russia or other fromer Soviet areas. The analysis confirms that the modelling of a strong state identity of minorities does not presume the suppression of their ethnic identity but their inclusion in the creation of a cofirmon strong state identity.

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Dįssemination of information relating to the Covenant

27. Addressing the issue of human rights e.g. in trainings ans coTTrses as indicated in paragraphs 25 to 39 of the report, the international core documents concerning human rights are always introduced, althouf, it must be mentioned, that the Council of Europe Convention on Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms is more widely known in Estonia compared to CCPR.

The teaching of the subject of human ril,ts at schools is relatively new in Estonia, which only emerged with the restoring of independence of the Republic of Estonia and is currentiy part of the subject programme of social studies on the secondary and upper secondary school levels. In addition the subject of human rights is part of the curriculum as a separate elective subject. The course of human rights includes information on the

nature of human rights, the documentation concerning human rifts, the impact of human rights in everyday iife and the situation of human rights in the contemporary world. The Estonian Union for Child Welfare and the Estonian Institute of Human Rights have compiled a study material of human rights (96 pages) in 2009. The subject of human rights is also an elective subject in the curricula of institutions of hiler education.

Teaching of human rights in general educatįon.'

SchooT TeveT II, grade 6 Main topic: Democracy Study topic: Key Human Rights Main topic: School democracy, chiidren's rights and opportunities to participate in poiitics Study topic: Principles of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child. Rights of the child. Baiance between the rights and responsibiiities.

SchooT TeveĮ III, grades 7-9 Main topic: the rights of society Study topic: Human rights in our daily lives, the role of the state and the individual by guaranteeing them. Fundamental socio-economic, political and cultural rights. Children's rights, duties and responsibilities. lnternational problems of child protection. Human traffi cking, drudgery, sexual exploitation. LINICEF's activiti es.

Upper secondatlt school TeveĻ grades l0-12 Main topic: Democratic governance and civic society Study topic: Human rights. Equality. Social rights and social protection. International and

national human rights protection mechanisms. Violation of human rights. Human traffi cking. Child labour.

Human rights teaching in higher educatįon., Content of the curricula in higher education is up to the hifer education institutions and

there is no centralized collecting of statistics. It is possible to get information about the

coļ,TrSeS from the teachers, register of the Estonian Education Information System (EHIS). However, since entering the data into the database is voluntary, the following list beļow may not be complete:

Courses addressing the topic of human rights in 2009/2010

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Course name Educationaļ institution

Constitutional Law and Human Rishts Estonian Public Service Academy

Human Rishts Estonian Public Service Academv

Special Course on Intemational Human Rishts Universitv Nord Special Course on Democracy and Human Rishts Universitv Nord Human Rishts University Nord

Human Rishts Tallinn University of Technology

The International and European Human Rights Protection Systems Tallinn University of Technology

ĮnternationalLaw and Human Riehts Theory in Russia Universitv Tarhļ The Transitional Rights/Justice in Eastern and Central Europe: The Problems of lnternational Law and Human Rishts Problems Universitv Tartu International Protection of Human Rishts University Tartu

Protection of Human Rishts

Institute of Humanities and Social Sciences

Protection of Human Rishts

lnstitute of Humanities and Social Sciences

Source: EHIS

Reports on the implementation of the Covenant and the opinion and recommendations of the Committee are available on the webpage of the Estonian Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

When preparing the report, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs first collected data from the relevant national authorities. The draft report compiled based on the received information and data was submitted for approval to the Chancellor of Justice, the Legal lnformation Centre for Human Rights, the Estonian Institųte for Human Rights and to the Human Rights Centre of Taliinn Technical University. Information in the report was adjusted and supplemented according to the remarks and comments of these organisations and the relevant remarks have also been referred to in the reoort.

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