The Constitutional Court passed judgment over the challenge concerning the constitutionality of the law by which the examination by the people’s ombudsperson of the applications submitted by persons declared mentally incompetent by court decision is banned. It ruled that the challenged norm is discriminatory towards the persons with mental disabilities as it does not ensure respect for the rights guaranteed by the Constitution of Moldova and the international treaties signed by Moldova, IPN reports.

The challenge was filed by people’s ombudsman Anatolie Munteanu, who argued that this provision violates the right to petition of the persons declared mentally incompetent and the principle of equality before the law.

The Constitutional Court held that by the disputed constraint, the persons with mental disabilities were practically deprived of the possibility of protecting their interests as the submission of an application to the people’s ombudsperson represents an important instrument of defense against abuses on the part of the guardian. When they are declared incompetent, these persons actually lose the chance to prove the opposite and to report ill-treatment or abuses to which they are subject.