The Covid-19 pandemic has raised great concerns about health, for individuals and communities, including mental health. As acknowledged by WHO, “in recent years there has been increasing acknowledgement of the important role mental health plays in achieving global development goals, as illustrated by the inclusion of mental health in the Sustainable Development Goals. However, despite progress in some countries, people with mental health conditions often experience severe human rights violations, discrimination, and stigma.” Having regard to the relevant case-law of the European Court of Human Rights and to Committee for the Prevention of Torture reports and taking into account the important work achieved by the United Nations namely on the rights of persons with disabilities, it is essential that the Council of Europe takes action with a view to improving the protection and promoting the autonomy and dignity of persons in mental health care.   

The conference will showcase promising examples of practices that promote the autonomy of persons with mental health issues, with a view to raising awareness and supporting efforts in member states that favour approaches that are person-centred and that value personal choices and decision-making.
Further, the event aims at identifying possible actions and tools which would contribute to the further development and application of human rights-based responses in mental health care services.