Special Investigation Service Conducts Training Supported by EU and UN OHCHR

Due to the increasing number of referrals of cases to the Special Investigation Service (SIS) and the need to enhance the capacity of employees within the newly created Devision for the Protection of Victims' Rights, a two-day training was conducted in Batumi for staff of this Department. The training focused on effective communication and issues related to torture and inhuman treatment.

The event was held with the support of the European Union (EU) and organized by the South Caucasus field presence of the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (UN OHCHR). Attendees included representatives from the administrative and public relations department of the SIS, as well as personnel from the hotline, the citizen reception, and the victims' rights protection division.

"The training program of effective communication included familiarization with the basic techniques, which in the future will help the employees of the service to manage communication in a way that will reduce the negative mood of the citizen and make the process more effective." - noted the Deputy Head of the SIS, Natia Songhulashvili.

The Senior Human Rights Adviser of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights in the South Caucasus, Vladimir Shkolnikov, emphasized the importance of creating a new devision in the SIS, which will be specifically focused on protecting the rights of victims. "This represents an important step forward in our commitment to promote human rights and ensure justice for all."

“We recognize that effective communication with victims is critical. Therefore, we support the capacity building actions of service employees, especially those who have the first contact with victims, to handle this relationship with professionalism and empathy," – he said.

The training was be led by experts on the topics - Giorgi Chkheidze and Nino Chaladze. Participants discussed the specific features of effective communication in the field of services, the main principles, the mechanisms for effectively dealing with citizens' prejudices and emotional background, as well as the main principles of fighting against torture, inhuman and degrading treatment, protecting the rights and interests of torture victims, and the crime of hate-motivated torture.