On 25 July, the Department for the Execution of Judgments participated virtually in the International Forum “Transforming the Penitentiary System: Finding Solutions to Stop Torture in Prisons”. The event was attended by representatives of the Government, Parliament, law-enforcement authorities, academia, civil society as well as international partners.
Discussions focused on combating torture and inhuman or degrading treatment in the penitentiary systems of other states and in the light of the European Court’s case-law, as well as on the means to prevent torture in Ukraine. In this respect, special attention was paid to the Sukachov/Nevmerzhitsky/Yakovenko/Melnik group of cases, concerning the long-standing structural problems of prison overcrowding, poor conditions of detention, nutrition and transportation, and the continued absence of a Convention-compliant system of domestic remedies in this respect. The participants stressed that the structural problems revealed by this group some 19 years ago, continue to have serious implications for persons in detention and require further decisive actions, in particular with regard to combating overcrowding and improving other material conditions of detention, promoting alternative sanctions, minimising the use of pre-trial detention, and establishing preventive and compensatory remedies.
The participants further acknowledged the continued commitment of the Ukrainian authorities to improving the penitentiary facilities, and the significant negative impact caused by the full-scale aggression of the Russian Federation against Ukraine.
The event was organised on the occasion of the Nelson Mandela International Day by the Ministry of Justice of Ukraine with the support of the programme “The Penitentiary Assistance in Response to the Armed Conflict and Emergency Needs in Ukraine” (PACE.UA), implemented by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime with the assistance of the Government of the Federal Republic of Germany.
Information relating to this event on the website of the Ministry of Justice of Ukraine: Міжнародний форум «Трансформація пенітенціарної системи: пошук рішень до припинення катувань у вʼязницях» з нагоди Міжнародного дня Нельсона Мандели.
