Perspectives of the new training model for penitentiary officers; Levon Balyan meets with sector-specific non-governmental organisations

Under the chairmanship of Deputy Minister of Justice Levon Balyan, the Armenian Office of the Raoul Wallenberg Institute of Human Rights and Humanitarian Law (RWI) and the "Legal Education and Rehabilitation Programmes Implementation Centre" State Non-Commercial Organisation jointly organised a meeting with local and international organisations that conduct trainings in the penitentiary sector.

Within the framework of the meeting, the vision for the future reform concerning the specified sector was outlined, particularly in the context of more efficient coordination of training courses and close co-operation within the scope of those courses, as well as in the context of development of strategic paths for the penitentiary and probation sectors, organisation of service in penitentiary institutions and introduction of a new model for organisation and training.

The participants attached importance to the fact that the Ministry of Justice is enterprising and expressed willingness for further co-operation.

Summing up the meeting, Deputy Minister Levon Balyan offered to organise the next meeting in December, during which the course of actions predetermined as a result of these discussions will be finalised and the framework of trainings for 2024 to be conducted for officers of the Penitentiary and Probation Services will be clarified.

Representatives of the Council of Europe Office in Yerevan, the Netherlands Helsinki Committee, the Centre for European Studies at Yerevan State University, as well as representatives of non-governmental organisations, including "Social Justice" NGO, "Civil Society Institute" NGO and "Legal Initiatives Centre" NGO took part in the meeting.