In Museum of Madness visitors from Slovenia and abroad learn that Slovenia is one of the most institutionalized countries in the world and that human rights of people, living in institutions are systematically violated. Our experience show that visitors are rarely aware about this issue and that there is no political will in Slovenia to carry out the process of deinstitutionalization, which started and unfortunately stopped with the closure of the only institution for mentally ill in Trate in 2003, where Museum of Madness is placed.
The main goal of this project is raising awareness among young people about human rights violations in institutions in Slovenia and about need to implement community social services. We will achieve this goal by developing and implementing educational tools and programs for students from universities, our partners in projects are Museum of National Liberation, Maribor, and Hartheim Castle Memorial Site, Austria. Both partners are specialized for representing difficult heritage and the meaning of respecting human rights. They offer rich educational program for young. In the project we will strengthen the voice of people who survived institutions or still live there by collecting their personal stories and including them in educational programs. The project partner Institution Franko will play an important role by bringing us in contact with people with long-term mental health problems who live an independent life in community, outside institutions.
In this project new educational tools, based on testimonies, will be systematically presented to professors, who teach about human rights and/or institutions. We have already established cooperation with some professors, within the project we will broaden this network and be able to systematically plan and carry out our programs professionally. For our organization this project means an important step towards professionalization, stability and sustainable operating.