A new report by the Council of Europe’s European Committee for the Prevention of Torture and Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (CPT) has found that the prison situation in Cyprus had significantly deteriorated since its previous visit in 2017 (see the executive summary of the report).
Increased levels of overcrowding have led to poor living conditions and increased levels of inter-prisoner violence. The lack of front-line operational prison staff only exacerbated the situation. The overcrowding was a result of specific factors, including the accommodation of significant numbers of persons held for short sentences and high numbers of persons on remand. The report recommends that the authorities urgently review the grounds for imprisoning these groups along with the application of alternatives to detention to decongest the prison system.
Based on a periodic visit to Cyprus between 9-17 May 2023, the report focused on the treatment and conditions of detention of persons in Nicosia Central Prisons and of persons held under immigration legislation, including at the Menoyia Detention Centre and the Pournara Registration Centre. It also examined the treatment of persons deprived of their liberty by the police.
