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Non-governmental organisation allowed to bring a case before the Court on behalf of young Roma man who died in psychiatric hospital
In Thursday’s Grand Chamber judgment in the case of Centre For Legal Resources On Behalf of Valentin
Câmpeanu v. Romania (application no. 47848/08), which is final1, the European Court of Human
Rights held, unanimously, that there had been:
- a violation of Article 2 (right to life) of the European Convention on Human Rights, in both its
substantive and its procedural aspects, and
- a violation of Article 13 (right to an effective remedy) in conjunction with Article 2.
The case concerned the death of a young man of Roma origin – who was HIV positive and suffering
from a severe mental disability – in a psychiatric hospital. The application was lodged by a non-
governmental organisation (NGO) on his behalf.
The Court found that, in the exceptional circumstances of the case, and bearing in mind the serious
nature of the allegations, it was open to the NGO to act as a representative of Mr Câmpeanu, even
though the organisation was not itself a victim of the alleged violations of the Convention.
As regards the complaints under Article 2, the Court found in particular: that Mr Câmpeanu had
been placed in medical institutions which were not equipped to provide adequate care for his
condition; that he had been transferred from one unit to another without proper diagnosis; and,
that the authorities had failed to ensure his appropriate treatment with antiretroviral medication.
The authorities, aware of the difficult situation – lack of personnel, insufficient food and lack of
heating – in the psychiatric hospital where he had been placed, had unreasonably put his life in
danger. Furthermore, there had been no effective investigation into the circumstances of his death.
Finding that the violations of the Convention in Mr Câmpeanu’s case reflected a wider problem, the
Court recommended Romania to take the necessary general measures to ensure that mentally
disabled persons in a comparable situation were provided with independent representation enabling
them to have complaints relating to their health and treatment examined before an independent
body.
(Please find details in Centre For Legal Resources On Behalf of Valentin Câmpeanu v. Romania)