There are a number of human rights institutions which you can use sometimes as a last resort to establish whether your human rights have been violated or not. There are both Moldovan and international institutions.
Each of these institutions has very specific functions and they work on the basis of different laws or international agreements. As regarding the international institutions, it is important to understand that:
- They can only be used if you have first tried all the domestic ordinary complaint mechanisms. For example, a general court or a complaints procedure that is offered to you first in Moldova;
- You can only apply to these international institutions if those national mechanisms have failed and a possible violation of your rights has not been properly investigated and compensated;
- These international institutions will only assess whether there has been a potential violation of your human rights. They will not re-examine your court case or declare any decisions of the State invalid.
In addition, at the national level, the Ombudsman can help you to understand your human rights and explain how you can protect them, and the Equality Council can protect you, if you are faced with acts of discrimination.
Learn more about the following human rights institutions: