The CPT’s delegation reviewed the measures taken by the Russian authorities in response to recommendations made by the Committee after its previous visits. In this connection, particular attention was paid to the treatment and conditions of detention of persons in police custody and penitentiary establishments, including remand prisoners, juveniles and prisoners serving life sentences. Further, the delegation examined the situation of patients held in civil and forensic psychiatric hospitals and of residents of social care homes.  
 
During the visit, the delegation held consultations with Alu ALKHANOV and Maxim TRAVNIKOV, Deputy Ministers of Justice, Valery MAKSIMENKO, Deputy Director of the Federal Penitentiary Service (FSIN), Dmitry KOSTENNIKOV, Deputy Minister of Health, and Alexey CHERKASOV, Deputy Minister of Labour and Social Protection, as well as with senior officials of the aforementioned Ministries, the Ministry of Internal Affairs and the FSIN.
 
On the occasion of the visit, the delegation also met with Boris KARNAUKHOV, Deputy Chairman of the Investigative Committee of the Russian Federation, and looked into the investigation of complaints about police ill-treatment in a number of specific cases referred to in the report on the CPT’s February 2016 ad hoc visit to the North Caucasian region of the Russian Federation.
 
In addition, meetings were held with Tatiana MOSKALKOVA, Human Rights Commissioner of the Russian Federation, members of the Public Monitoring Commissions for the Moscow and Perm regions and representatives of non-governmental organisations active in areas of concern to the CPT.
 
At the end of the visit, the delegation presented its preliminary observations to the Russian federal authorities.
 
The visit was carried out by the following members of the CPT:
 

•   Wolfgang HEINZ, 2nd Vice-President of the CPT (Head of delegation)
•   Mark KELLY
•   Marie LUKASOVÁ
•   Vytautas RAŠKAUSKAS
•   Davor STRINOVIĆ
•   Victor ZAHARIA.

They were supported by Elvin ALIYEV, Aurélie PASQUIER and Dalia ŽUKAUSKIENĖ of the CPT’s Secretariat, and assisted by an expert, Clive MEUX, forensic psychiatrist, Oxford, United Kingdom.
 
The delegation visited the following places of deprivation of liberty:
 
Police establishments
 

• Temporary detention facility (IVS) of the Internal Affairs Directorate of the South-Western Administrative District, Moscow
• IVS at the Main Directorate of Internal Affairs of Krasnoyarsk region
• IVS No. 5, Krasnoyarsk
• IVS at the Main Directorate of Internal Affairs of Novosibirsk region

• Pre-trial establishment (SIZO) No. 1 (“Matrosskaya Tishina”), Moscow
• SIZO No. 2 (“Butyrka”), Moscow
• SIZO No. 5, Moscow (unit for juveniles)
• SIZO No. 1, Krasnoyarsk (unit for juveniles)
• SIZO No. 1, Perm

• Strict-Regime Colony No. 1, Solikamsk, Perm region
• Colony No. 2 (for life-sentenced prisoners), Solikamsk.

In addition, the delegation went to SIZO No. 1 in Novosibirsk in order to interview persons who had recently been in police custody.

Psychiatric hospitals
 

• Krasnoyarsk regional psycho-neurological dispensary No. 1
• Federal specialised psychiatric hospital with intensive supervision, Novosibirsk
• Psychiatric hospital No. 3, Novosibirsk

Social care homes

• Shilinka psycho-neurological boarding home, Krasnoyarsk region
• Ob psycho-neurological boarding home, Novosibirsk region.