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STATUS AND THE PROTECTION OF THE RIGHTS OF PERSONS WITH MENTAL DISORDERS IN THE REPUBLIC OF CROATIA AND THE PROBLEMS WITH THEIR SOCIAL AND LABOUR INTEGRATION

M. Lulic, M. Vinkovic

Abstract

Although the Republic of Croatia has committed itself by both international obligations and its national legislation to respecting the rights of persons with mental disorders, preserving their dignity, improving their health and integrating them into the family, work and social environment, their status in society is far from satisfactory. Persons with mental disorders are faced with a series of problems in their everyday life, e.g. systematic discrimination, lack of adequate health and social services, poor rehabilitation, social isolation, difficult integration into society, problems with finding and keeping a job, they are victims of prejudice, stereotypes and stigmatisation, deprived of legal capacity etc. The first part of the paper gives an overview of positive law protecting the rights and regulating the status of persons with mental disorders in the Republic of Croatia and points to problems with the lack of a clear definition of these terms. The second part of the paper deals with the issues of discrimination against persons with mental disorders, especially in the context of the loss of legal capacity and employment problems of both persons categorised as persons with mental disorders and those with the status of persons with disabilities due to their impaired mental health.

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