Moldova was found guilty by the European Court for Human Rights, in the period 2006-2007 alone, in 4 cases involving torture and 10 cases of inhuman conditions of detention, being compelled to pay damages ranging from EUR 8,000 to 20,000, Vitalie Iordachi, consultant at the “Lawyers for Human Rights” told today a press conference. The news conference addressed the issues of countering torture and was held jointly by the human rights defenders in Moldova, on the occasion of the upcoming UN International Day for Victims of Torture, marked on June 26. According to Iordachi, because of the fact that some public functionaries are not fully aware of the gravity of the act of torture, Moldova and its budget continuously incurs losses of hundreds of thousands of euros. Since 1998 till present, the Government in Chisinau has been compelled by the ECHR to pay damages of over EUR 800,000. Iordachi also mentioned that the cases regarding the conditions of detention can easily be won at ECHR because of the poor conditions in the country’s prisons. Since 1998 till 2007, ECHR has received 2798 complaints from Moldovan citizens, including 621 in 2006 alone. This fact shows, according to Iordachi, that the citizens of Moldova have become more confident in the defence mechanism guaranteed by the UN Convention against Torture. The executive director of the Helsinki Committee for Human Rights Moldova, Teo Carnat, mentioned that as from June 18, HCHRM has started an action of preventing torture through visits to prisons and mental hospitals in the republic. In the near future, the Committee intends to publish reports about the violations against the persons confined in these institutions, about the inhuman and degrading conditions, the lack of elementary hygiene products, food and others. Programme coordinator of the Amnesty International Moldova, Veaceslav Turcan stated that the lawyers in Moldova are currently involved in training courses designed to provide a better protection of the victims of torture. In his words, one of the most efficient mechanisms to protect the rights of such victims is to make these cases public. The press conference in just one of the many events organised by the human rights defenders on the occasion of the International Day in Support of Victims of Torture. The list of activities includes meetings with tuberculosis infected convicts, seminars for lawyers regarding the defence of victims of torture, for public functionaries and human rights protectors, a public action for gathering signatures to support the victims of torture, and others.