Detainees' right to work breeched: watchdog

The Moldovan detainees' right to work is breeched, find lawyers from the Legal Assistance for Detainees Center (CAJD). Starting from February 2007, the watchdog has monitored the observance of the detainees' rights in all the Moldovan penitentiaries. Yet, a representative of the general prosecutor's office says most of the inmates do not want to work, Info-Prim Neo reports. Vitalie Modranga, one of the five lawyers having provided legal assistance to detainees in the CAJD project, says many of them want to work, but they are told there are no jobs. The lawyers vow to try to promote an amendment to the law allowing the years of work in penitentiaries to be taken into account when establishing the amount of their pensions. According to prosecutor Igor Balmus, the problem is not about a shortage of jobs, but about the inmates not willing to work, unless they like the offer. “There are jobs, but most of the detainees suffer from 'personality disturbances',” Balmus opines. The CADJ is a project implemented by the League for the Defense of Human Rights from Moldova (LADOM), with the financial support of the Helsinki Committee for Human Rights.