Monitoring the Implementation of Social Rights for Convicts in Penal Institutions of the Kyiv Region

The findings of the monitoring carried out by the All-Ukrainian Charitable Foundation “Legal Initiative” indicate, in particular, a lack of belief among convicts in the possibility of an improvement in the situation and a distrust of prison staff. The authors of the study believe that their views cannot be ignored, as this only deepens the confrontation between them and the colony staff.

Throughout December 2007, the All-Ukrainian Charitable Foundation “Legal Initiative,” with the assistance of the State Department of Ukraine for the Execution of Punishments in Kyiv and the Kyiv region, conducted monitoring of the implementation of the social rights of convicts in four penal institutions in the Kyiv region. As respondents, both convicts and representatives of the staff of the Kyiv region institutions were able to express their points of view on the observance of the social rights of convicts and the problems associated with the provision of these rights by the administration of the institutions. For each of these groups, a special questionnaire was developed in which respondents could provide not only a suggested answer to each question but also express their point of view in a free format. After the purpose of the study was explained, the questionnaires were distributed and collected by representatives of the “Legal Initiative” Foundation.

It is understood that, traditionally, the administration tried to involve convicts who were most loyal to them, but the majority of prisoners answered honestly and tried to convey their point of view on life in the institution to the public. On the whole, the convicts showed significantly more interest in informing the public about their problems than the representatives of the institution staff. Almost a third of the questionnaires were filled out partially, or answers to key questions were skipped. We decided to consider only those questionnaires in which the respondents answered the majority of the questions; thus, out of 400 questionnaires, 280 proved suitable. In the process of processing the results, it was decided to retain some of the original statements of the convicts, preserving the authentic language of the respondents, and to acquaint readers with the culture of the “silent mass” of convicts.

In general, we managed to obtain a picture that quite clearly outlines the state of provision for social rights and the existing problems in the institutions of the Kyiv region.

Convicts – General characteristics of respondents

The average age of the convicts is 31 years. The youngest turned 18, and the oldest is 59 years old. Every third person has an incomplete secondary education, every fourth is a graduate of a vocational school, and only 5.4% graduated from universities. In other words, the intellectual profile of the prisoners, on one hand, indicates that crimes are primarily committed by unemployed and poorly educated individuals, and on the other, that individuals with higher education are quite rarely convicted.

Every fifth person is serving a sentence for the first time, 42% for the second time, and 31% of our respondents can be classified as recidivists—serving their sentence for the third or even up to the seventh time.

The table shows that 45% of respondents had no specific occupation at the time of committing the crime, half had a profession and worked in it, and 4.6% admitted that their main source of income was theft. As we can see, unlike in European countries, the main reason for committing crimes is systemic poverty, i.e., very limited material opportunities for obtaining an education and a normally paid profession. We can state that imprisonment is a form of unemployment insurance. Every criminologist knows that an increase in unemployment by 1% increases crime by 6%, and with us, unfortunately, the growth of the budget revenue is not at all connected with the increase in the number of jobs.

Furthermore, as we can see, 76% of convicts had decent living conditions and cannot be classified as belonging to marginalized sections of the population. Only 5% were renting housing, and 8.2% had no fixed place of residence.

Only 17.1% of our respondents were married and responsible for someone other than themselves. The absence of a family and responsibility for one's own children in an adult man, as we can see, significantly increases the risk of committing unlawful acts. There can be many reasons for this—from a desire to accumulate something for a marriage to an immoral lifestyle in which finding a responsible partner is impossible.

Primary socialization in the family plays a very large role here. Half of the respondents were raised in families with both parents. In places of deprivation of liberty, the percentage of boarding school graduates is very high. And this means that the state's social policy regarding orphans requires a cardinal revision, not in terms of better material provision, but in changing methods of upbringing and social training. Unfortunately, orphanhood is a social phenomenon. Often, a single mother cannot provide for her own child, nor devote time to them because she is occupied with problems of survival, or has left abroad for work altogether. We already have a third of such cases, and their number, compared to 1998, has grown almost twofold.

One of the most important aspects of the lives of convicts is their relationship with relatives. The status of a convict is very often defined through the attitude of their relatives. If relatives are helping the convict, it means they are a decent person who, upon receiving something from the outside world, will be able to share. Social work in colonies must contribute maximally to the improvement of relationships with relatives. This is the core goal of penal social work, which is aimed not at punishment for a crime committed in the past, but at the future of the client. Thus, relationships with relatives have improved for every sixth convict in two institutions: 35 (Bila Tserkva) and 119 (Martusivka), while in the remaining colonies, this is a quite rare phenomenon. From this, one can conclude that at least some social work is being conducted in only two institutions. However, in institution 85 (Berezan), there is the highest number of those whose relationships with relatives have worsened.

An important aspect of a criminal's rehabilitation is the legitimacy of the punishment: that is, the convict's belief that all procedural actions took place in accordance with the law, and that they were treated fairly and impartially. Such a belief opens the way to sincere remorse, an understanding of what has been done, and a desire to correct the situation. If the law enforcement system allows for violations of the rights of suspects during the inquiry and investigation, and judges do not consider all aspects of the case in favor of the accused—in other words, when the process takes on a prosecutorial bias—then the convicted person feels unfairly punished, and their chances for reformation and return to a law-abiding lifestyle decrease significantly.

Ideally, real criminals should serve their sentences in institutions, and they should be aware of this. With us, only 3.6% admit to being such. What kind of reformation can one talk about if 34.3% consider the only reason for their presence in the colony to be not the commission of a crime, but the fact that they lacked the funds to pay their way out. Currently, such a point of view testifies to the high level of corruption and incompetence of the law enforcement system.

Social rights of convicts

Correctional facilities belong to institutions that are accepted in sociology as being “total”. These include orphanages/boarding schools of all types, prisons, military formations, inpatient hospitals, and communes. The peculiarity of such institutions consists in the fact that an individual, falling into their tight clutches, centrally receives a share of all social goods—food, clothing, a place to sleep, medical aid, a type of activity, work, entertainment, and so on. For all this, the individual is required only to show gratitude—to accept everything that is given according to their status position (place in the hierarchy) and to follow the rules, requirements, and orders of the administration.

Among total institutions, prisons occupy a special place. Firstly, no one came there voluntarily, secondly, no one can even temporarily leave, and thirdly, no one can choose anything—all aspects of life are decided by third parties from among the administration and staff of the institution in accordance with adopted laws, rules, orders, and instructions.

Another feature of total institutions is always the limitation of resources and their centralized redistribution. In principle, everyone should receive an equal share, but in no prison in the world is this requirement fulfilled.

Realization of the right to healthcare

According to the established rules regarding a convict's arrival at an institution, they must be thoroughly examined and questioned by a doctor, and an act concerning their state of health must be drawn up, in which, in the presence of illnesses or injuries, the diagnosis is clearly indicated and treatment is prescribed. As we can see from the table, this elementary requirement, according to reports from convicts, is not fulfilled properly, especially in the Berezan and Bucha colonies.

The medical unit works somewhat better in the Bila Tserkva colony, but even there it is far from a normal state.

After a multi-month stay at Kyiv Pre-Trial Detention Centre No. 13, where conditions of detention are much worse than in any of the colonies in the Kyiv region, especially from the point of view of hygiene, only 12.5% of respondents considered themselves absolutely healthy at the moment of arrival at the institution.

Among convicts, the most common fears concern the threat of infection with tuberculosis, HIV, and AIDS. Many new arrivals asked the doctor to perform the appropriate tests, but they were refused on the grounds that the tests are too expensive and there are no funds. More than half of the young respondents, even when having certain problems, preferred not to approach the doctor as a representative of the administration. And not in vain! As the following table shows, only 3.2%, that is 9 people out of 280 of our respondents, received the necessary treatment in the institutions of the Kyiv region.

Among the main complaints of the convicts, a prominent place is occupied by the low qualifications of the medical personnel of the institutions, the lack of medication, and, of course, the indifferent attitude towards the sick, but this is rather a consequence of the underfunding of the institutions.

From the following table, it is clear that only 16.8% of convicts (average age 31) do not need any medical help. The table very schematically summarizes the main illnesses from which the respondents suffer. It should be noted that this is not entirely reliable data, since more than a third refused to answer, but the general picture emerges as quite pessimistic—the more complex the illness, the fewer chances for treatment; the more widespread the illness, the harder it is to get the most elementary medicines, for example, cream for fungus or naphthyzine for a runny nose.

As for dentistry, when filling one tooth in state institutions costs 120 hryvnias, and 36 hryvnias per year are allocated for a prisoner's medical protection, there are practically no chances to save teeth in a colony. This can be seen even visually—more than half of the prisoners show gaps in their mouths. The only available type of dental help is tooth extraction.

Of particular concern is the very sharp increase in the incidence of hepatitis. Twice as many people die from this disease as from AIDS, but neither prevention nor treatment (viral hepatitis, which affects the liver, is incurable) is provided in the institutions.

As we can see, one of the leading places—14.3%—is occupied by the general deterioration of the health status of convicts—avitaminosis and dystrophy.

The nutrition of convicts as a whole corresponds to the standards for the caloric content of products, but the quality of these products and their vitamin content is insufficient. Consequently, we have a whole bouquet of diseases.

Special harm to health is caused by the massive use of so-called “compound fat” for the preparation of products, which leads to gastritis, colitis, stomach and duodenal ulcers, liver cirrhosis, kidney diseases, and cardiovascular ailments.

Only 4 percent, or 1 in 25 convicts, considers the state of provision with medical supplies to be normal. Pay attention to the difference between institutions—the better the management in the colony, the more individuals consider the state to be normal. The worst state, and not just by this indicator, based on comparative conclusions from the answers of the convicts, is in the Berezan and Bucha correctional colonies. If a free person can deny themselves something in favor of treatment, then convicts generally do not have such an opportunity. From the following table, we see that only 3.9% can buy necessary medicine with money earned in the colony, and 51.1% did not even earn enough for streptocide.

In fact, the treatment of convicts is completely shifted to the pockets of their relatives, if there are any and if they wish to help. On the other hand, treatment, like any other type of social service in imprisonment, is monopolized and depends on the attitude of the monopoly supplier. That is why one respondent even wrote regarding medicine in capital letters—“anything at all at special prices”. 36.4% of those questioned depend on the help of their relatives, but even here there is a whole range of problems of which the convicts complain.

In particular, personnel arbitrarily, without the patient's consent, use the medicine purchased by them at their own discretion. Or even perfectly safe medicines from the point of view of narcotic content are not issued to the hands in any of the colonies. Therefore, the convict must come several times a day and, according to the prescription, take the medication in the presence of a medical worker. It is not always the case that the convict is released to the medical unit; the treatment regimen is thus disrupted, and the effect of such treatment does not bring the desired result. If a person has ended up in an isolation cell, then one can immediately forget about treatment—any medical assistance to “punished” individuals is absent in the penal institutions of the Kyiv region.

74% of convicts evaluate the attitude of medical personnel towards them as negative, i.e., indifferent and poor. At the same time, according to the court sentence, a person is convicted only to deprivation of liberty, not to the loss of health. And the results of the monitoring speak for themselves, especially in the Berezan colony. In order to make the picture clearer and more understandable for readers, we decided to give the word to the convicts and quote their statements from the margins of the questionnaires and in the “other” column, while preserving the stylistics and spelling.

PC-35 -Bila Tserkva

· “The chief physician sometimes reacts to the complaints of a convict, but the staff never does”;

· “We have mass dermatological diseases, hemorrhoids, dystrophy, kidneys are not treated at all”;

· “The medical personnel reacts to the requests of convicts and provides appropriate help only on the direct order of the colony chief”;

· “It is impossible to transfer funds for treatment”;

· “They forbid one's own medications, for example ‘Bronholitin’”;

· “Convicts are refused testing for HIV and AIDS”;

· “Send a commission to check the medical unit!!!”;

· in the suggestions column— “cream against fungus”.

PC-95 – Berezan

· “Expensive medications are stolen or swapped”;

· “Whatever you are sick with—the administration doesn't give a damn”;

· “Colds-prone tuberculosis patients are chased out into the cold for exercises. They are refused treatment—there is no money”;

· “I have the funds, but the institution refuses to buy medication even for the severely ill”;

· “They refuse testing for venereal diseases and AIDS”;

· “High trauma rate, but there are no first-aid kits in the workshops”;

· “In the medical unit they steal expensive medication brought by relatives”;

· “DIZO (disciplinary ward)—a source of tuberculosis in the institution”;

· “In the medical unit, they immediately make it clear that it is useless to turn to them”;

· “Depending on the attitude of the administration, they accept the necessary medicine from family”;

· “In the penal institution, I received a disability and I do not know how to arrange a disability pension”;

· “Needed medical help after a 12-month stay in the Brovary temporary detention center. The surgeon gave a referral to Bucha. The medical chief refused”;

· “Floors in the sleeping quarters are tiled, and because of this all convicts have colds”;

· “Expensive medications were accepted from relatives, but are not given to me”;

· “Cold, especially after the bathhouse—in the vestibule t is 5⁰”;

· “The workshops are not heated at all”;

· “HIV, but they refuse a test”.

PC-85 – Bucha

· “Venereal diseases (HIV, AIDS, syphilis)—drug addiction is everywhere and in everyone”;

· “The doctor is incompetent and unauthorized”;

· “Diseases in the penal institution—respiratory-viral infections, tuberculosis, HIV, stomach problems, the food only exacerbates them”;

· “Except for analgin, they give nothing”;

· “Closed-form tuberculosis—treatment is not being conducted”;

· “You cannot get teeth filled, they only pull them out, and they do it poorly!”;

· “There is no ointment for fungal infections. I have lost a lot of weight; I asked to be put on a diet, but they will not do it without a 20 UAH bribe”;

· “We are very often and for long periods suffering from colds. Many have fungal infections on their feet; teeth are a separate issue, a very painful one”;

· “Toothache (abscess), colds, tuberculosis – I did not go to the doctors – it is useless here”;

· “I am terrified; I heard that a finger was rotting. It could have been cleaned, but our doctor simply cut it off; many of us die due to the negligence of doctors”;

· “Medicines are stolen from incoming parcels.”

BVK-119 Martusivka

· “Most people are ill from malnutrition”;

· “With a temperature of 38.5°C, I should not be forced out into the cold. If you do not provide medicine, then at least do not touch the patient; let them recover on their own”;

· “The water in the colony is very poor and untreated”;

· “A sick prisoner is placed in a disciplinary cell (SHIZO) for failing to go to the canteen”;

· “They add fats to the food that destroy the stomach, liver, etc.”;

· “It is better not to see a psychiatrist like ours”;

· “I have hepatitis, yet I am forced to load logs.”

Of course, one should take into account the potential subjectivity of the prisoners’ statements. However, such high unanimity gives reason to believe that the phenomena mentioned by the convicts have a chronic manifestation in correctional facilities.

Realisation of the right to work and decent pay

The State Department for the Execution of Sentences released figures on the employment of the special contingent in places of detention. According to its data (1st quarter of 2008), only 21% of convicts are working, while the rest in the colonies suffer from unemployment.

The data obtained as a result of the survey of convicts demonstrates a diametrically opposite picture: only 22.5% are not working, and the rest work even without days off and in two shifts.

43% of convicts receive nothing at all for their work. On average – and there is sufficient evidence to state this – 77.5% of convicts work in the facilities of the Kyiv region.

It is known that colonies are funded by the state budget only at 50%; the remaining funds must be earned by the prisoners, although according to international obligations accepted by Ukraine, funding for protected categories – maintenance, nutrition, medicine – must be one hundred percent from the state budget. Furthermore, convicts cannot be forced to work overtime in violation of labour legislation. Unfortunately, in all colonies of the Kyiv region, we have mass violations of labour legislation.

Convicts do not believe that the administration of correctional facilities properly ensures the safety of their work in production. There is a lack of proper tools, yet the work task, according to the convicts, must be completed at any cost using makeshift means, which is often associated with the violation of basic safety rules. Failure to complete a task is interpreted as a refusal to work and is punished by isolation. In any case, one can forget about parole.

Convicts complain about the absence of even first aid kits in the workshops. Only every fifth person (21.1%) considers their working conditions acceptable. The administration saves on heating the work premises; there are no changing rooms, no toilets, no workwear, the showers are not working, the windows in the workshops are broken, the roof leaks, and the ventilation does not work. The worst working conditions in the Kyiv region, according to the answers of the convicts, are in the 95th colony (Berezan).

Getting a job has long ceased to be a problem for convicts. The problem is getting a job for which funds will be accrued, and one can buy something in the shop to supplement the poor ration of the facility. Only 1.4% of convicts refuse to work out of "principle". The most abuses were found in the Bucha colony. And in the Berezan institution, the head "solved" the problem of payment very simply – at the end of the month, he gives workers 20 packs of “Pryluky” cigarettes each.

It gives the impression that most of the administration's abuses regarding pay and working conditions occur precisely in the Berezan colony.

If the average monthly salary of convicts in the Kyiv region, according to their testimonies (and this is the arithmetic mean of 280 responses), is 74 Hryvnias, then in the 95th institution, it is only 23 Hryvnias, and this is despite the fact that the paid labour hours exceed the established norms! But then again, everyone works overtime everywhere.

In all institutions in 2008, convicts worked a minimum of 2 hours on paid work and a maximum of 14. Many convicts work with guaranteed pay for only a portion of their working hours.

In other words, the convicts work for free for almost half of their 16-hour working day, and for the other half, they work for "humanitarian" rates that the managers of the institution have set for them. At the same time, the administration of the institutions simply ignores the minimum rates and the level of the minimum wage established by decrees of the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine. Let us ask ourselves the question: Would a single normal, free person work in hazardous production for almost sixteen hours six days a week for 74 Hryvnias a month? And for 23 Hryvnias? This is possible only under conditions of complete secrecy and the external lack of control of the criminal-executive system.

Currently, the administration of the State Department of Ukraine for the Execution of Sentences in the city of Kyiv and the Kyiv region provides the following information (we quote): “For the 6 months of 2008, the average earnings of convicts in the region’s institutions amounted to 225 UAH before deductions, which almost corresponds to the average results in the entire execution of sentences system. It should be noted that in institutions No. 85 and 95 (which were highlighted in the monitoring), the average monthly salary of a working convict is 243 and 271 UAH, respectively. At the same time, it is necessary to note that the level of wages for convicts is conditioned by the following aspects.

Firstly, the salary is accrued depending on the quality and quantity of work performed (as in the country as a whole), based on norms and rates, which in turn are calculated in accordance with the generally accepted methodology of labour rationing, which is the same for all business entities in the country’s industry.

Secondly, the attitude of convicts towards socially useful work and the level of their professional training (it is technologically necessary to perform work according to categories 4-5, but the professional level is 1-2) significantly slow down the work and reduce the fulfilment of economically justified output norms, compliance with which in full allows for obtaining the appropriate salary.”

This is the official response. But why are 280 convicts from 4 correctional institutions of the region of a different opinion? This cannot be ignored! Such a disproportion between the answers of the convicts and the official data only attests to the presence of an acute problem, the lack of completeness of information for society and, above all, for the convicts. And this is a sign of the closed nature of the criminal-executive system, which creates preconditions for abuses, injustice in the use of convict labour and their remuneration, and neglect of their economic rights, which the convicts are signalling to society with their responses.

Is it possible to change anything at all and realistically improve the situation regarding the work of convicts in penal facilities?

One of the convicts wrote: “Proposals – that is for you to decide. We will not change anything – we are merely guinea pigs.” The vast majority of convicts refused to answer this question. It will become clear from the following sections why this happened.

What outrages convicts the most is the meagre pay; 63.9% have no money at all in their accounts and are deprived of any possibility to buy anything in the institution’s shop with their earned funds. By the way, all the shops in all the colonies belong to some relatives of the colony leadership. The prices are extremely high. The goods are the cheapest, and the food is often past its expiration date.

The effectiveness of the proposals that the convicts did manage to express (to change, to dismiss, etc.) is doubtful and more closely resembles a list of problems than a list of steps that need to be taken.

Comments from convicts and marginal notes regarding working conditions and their improvement

BVK-35 – Bila Tserkva

· “The roof in the workshops is actively leaking – colds, rheumatism, flu”

· “Establish sales and pay salaries, instead of overfeeding the cons with pies”

· “The maximum category that can be achieved in the institution after many years of working ‘for the boss’ is 3, and even that only in exceptional cases”

· “Most have a six-day working week”

· “Insufficient tools in the workshops – injuries”

· “There is no sense in working – there is nothing to buy, and it is almost impossible to take money out of here”

· “They generally do not want to pay for work”

· “Provide an opportunity to issue tools”

· Working conditions: “Horrible, water is constantly dripping on our heads”

· “Convicts do not receive the money earned in the penal facility, and the administration always has a reason for this”

· “Let there be a 5-day working week!”

· They ask to organise “control over accounting, especially salary accruals”

· “Cancel the 100% turnout for work”

BVK-95 – Berezan

· “There is no sense in working – there is nothing to buy in the kiosk, and the money is not returned upon release”

· “The workshops are not heated at all” (mentioned repeatedly)

· “All workshops and tools for production are in a terrible, emergency condition”

· “Instead of a salary, handouts are centrally issued in the form of cigarettes, which the administration has turned into a deficit. (from 10 to 20 packs of ‘Pryluky’ cigarettes)”

· “There is no pay or workwear at all”

· “They accrue 10-15 Hryvnias for work for shopping, everything else is taken by the administration”

· “Everything in production is in an emergency condition”

· “Allow winter clothing at work – it is very cold in the workshops”

· “If they paid according to the law, we would like to work”

· “There are no conditions for work. I have been working for 2 months, and it turns out there is not even a personal account, which means there will be no shopping”

BVK-85 – Bucha

· “Provide people with normal shopping. To have cigarettes, sweets, tooth powder, a brush, laundry detergent, notebooks. Because people who have no one want to go to work to earn money for cigarettes. But this is not available. They don't go.”

· “There is no hot water in the industrial zone to wash. Everyone washes with cold water and catches a cold”

· “Meagre salaries. There is no kiosk, and if there is, the items there have long since expired”

· “Occupational safety is best ensured here in commercial areas”

· “I earned 425 Hryvnias. 306 were deducted for food”

· On working conditions: “It is unlikely to be possible; on one hand, it will get better, on the other, worse, perhaps not immediately. They will wait until all commissions leave and, let us say, will ‘take revenge’. They may go as far as provoking it deliberately and calling in the riot police…”

· “There is enough work. I don't even have time.” (car mechanic, salary – 320)

· “Salary is 25 Hryvnias. Not enough even for soap”

· Needed – “Warm workshops, showers, lighting, workwear in production”

· “Work and payment for it so that a person does not become bitter”

· “We have equipment from the 1960s-70s”

· “Providing a good shop – the main incentive for work”

· “Expired canned goods in the shop”

· “For a good job (200-350 Hryvnias), a service or money for the administration is required”

· “Based on the law, we need heated premises, hot water after work, and the possibility of transferring money for the support of minor children”

· “In the shop, everything is expired and written off. No basic necessities”

· “I worked – they did not pay. I was not released on parole. Health deteriorated because the production was hazardous – the ‘Polymerstroy’ firm.”

· “Worked for 5 months and earned 17 Hryvnias”

· “We work for a pittance. The shopping is horrible”

Realisation of the right to education and profession

In every institution, convicts have the opportunity to obtain a number of professions. Not all of these professions may be useful in civilian life. Moreover, it is disadvantageous for the colony administration to assign a high category to a convict who has even the highest level of professional qualification. After all, they would have to pay a salary for the sixth category, not the second. Such a policy undermines the desire of convicts to improve their qualifications. Indeed, what is the point of doing this if it does not affect the salary at all?

The institutions mostly train welders, electricians, electric motor rewinders, electrical fitters, plumbers, and turners. Training takes place in poorly equipped premises, but it yields results – 61.4% of convicts claim that this knowledge and skills may be useful to them in civilian life. Only 4.3% of respondents believe that they can achieve a high professional level.

As we can see, the training process is significantly affected by the conditions that the administration is capable of creating specifically for professional training. Only one-third of those surveyed consider the conditions available in their institutions acceptable and conducive to learning.

Considering the level of modern requirements and the equipment that a modern plumber or electrician works with, and comparing these requirements with the level of equipment that exists today in the institutions, it can be stated that the vast majority of equipment is hopelessly outdated and its study does not bring the expected benefit.

Regarding preparation for release, from this table we see that, in the opinion of the convicts, no serious preparation for release is being carried out. Even though funds are allocated for this both from the state budget and from charitable organisations. Only one respondent from the 95th institution claimed that at the time of the survey, he was undergoing preparation for release under the “Criminon” programme in a religious sect.

Convicts can obtain secondary education and finish a vocational school during the serving of their sentence, but higher education is inaccessible to them. Despite a number of high-profile statements regarding distance learning for convicts, nothing has been implemented in any institution. The problem lies in funding. One has to pay for education. In the budget of the State Criminal-Executive Service, funds for this are not provided, the colony also has nothing to pay with, and convicts have even less money in their accounts. At the same time, education is needed only by individual prisoners and by society itself. As can be seen from the table, most prisoners are quite satisfied with themselves and do not wish to study further.

After release, half of the convicts count on the help of relatives. One-third try to be realistic and claim that they are capable of coping with a mass of problems on their own. Only one in a hundred counts on the help of religious organisations.

Regarding the help that convicts need immediately, legal and medical services are the clear leaders. It is precisely these services of proper quality that convicts lack. Unfortunately, neither highly qualified doctors nor high-quality lawyers will work for free, especially within the dilapidated walls of colonies where one can catch tuberculosis or hepatitis. As it turned out, every fifth convict needs medical assistance.

Proposals of the convicts

The table summarises the proposals of the convicts regarding measures that, in their opinion, could significantly improve life in the institutions.

Conclusions:

The data obtained during the survey of convicted persons (even taking into account their subjectivity and emotional nature) indicate that one should not expect any acceptable results from the institutions of the Kyiv region that would provide a positive outlook for society in terms of reducing recidivism. The level of exploitation of convict labour is very high in all institutions without exception; the shadow component of the prison economy is also high, the level of social security is low, and the level of trust in management is equally low. The most stable colony in the region is the Bila Tserkva colony. It has understandable, even if not always acceptable, rules, and this colony is perhaps the only one in the region that is fully managed. In other correctional facilities, the situation is significantly worse.

The social rights of convicts in the region’s penal institutions are systematically violated, and the situation will only deteriorate in the near future due to sharp increases in energy and food prices. The low qualification of personnel may lead to forceful pressure on prisoners and to mass riots in the colonies. As a result, one should expect a strengthening of the criminal prison subculture, further corruption of personnel, and mass resignations of young staff in the system.

In the near future, the system will face a staff shortage, convicts will face a sharp deterioration in living conditions, and society will face an increase in recidivism. This grim forecast follows from the analysis of the convicts' responses obtained during the study.

Survey of Penal Institution Staff

A total of 137 employees of penal institutions in the Kyiv region were surveyed; however (for various reasons), only 52 questionnaires proved valid. The average age of the surveyed personnel is 34. The average length of service in penal institutions is eight and a half years. Our respondents mainly held positions as junior inspectors and unit heads. That is to say, those who work directly with convicts and know their real needs and the institutions' capacity to ensure their basic rights. Nine out of ten respondents were married, and the majority had children to support.

The educational level of the personnel leaves much to be desired, as it has deteriorated significantly over the last few years. About 60% of those surveyed have a secondary education. And this is for working in places where an ordinary teacher has simply nothing to do – it requires special training and, at a minimum, higher education

in the field of social pedagogy or social work. We are currently witnessing a continuous decline in relatively qualified personnel – their numbers are decreasing every year. Working in penal institutions today is difficult, therefore, under conditions of large staffing shortages, often everyone is hired.

Only 13.5% of those surveyed consider their living conditions to be good, and in current circumstances, given official salaries at the level of 1000 hryvnias (at the time of the survey), our respondents do not even have hope of earning enough honestly to improve their living conditions. 26.9% of those surveyed do not even have the ability to rest properly at home after a workday, as they lack the facilities for this.

It is clear that this is where the source of tension lies, which ultimately significantly worsens the psychological state of the personnel. Prolonged stay in stressful conditions leads to the individual becoming irritable and unstable. If one adds to this that all employees of the institutions, due to understaffing, are forced to work overtime, then it is impossible to even talk about a normal state of mental health of the personnel. Furthermore, due to their work, employees of the criminal-executive system are very often in social isolation and communicate almost exclusively within their own circle.

The state has done everything to ensure that personnel of penal institutions fear the future, feel socially insecure, and perceive a lack of prospects. Indifference to people who work in conditions of colossal daily stress leads, in turn, to their professional deformation, i.e., indifference to the needs of convicts and pragmatic egoism. This is evidenced by the results obtained, which are set out in the tables below. The data speak for themselves. 70-80% of surveyed employees did not offer any ideas at all and answered only closed-ended questions.

Conclusions

The conducted study of the state of observance of socio-economic rights of convicted persons gives us the opportunity to draw the following general conclusions:

1. The study did not reveal sufficient evidence that the national criminal-executive legislation, regulatory documents of the State Department of Ukraine for the Execution of Sentences, and the practice of realizing the socio-economic rights of convicted persons have been brought into full compliance with, and are being carried out according to, the requirements of international standards for human rights observance in this sphere.

2. After the Council of Europe adopted new European Prison Rules in January 2006, no additions or changes have been initiated or made to the current Criminal-Executive Code and regulatory documents of the State Department of Ukraine for the Execution of Sentences that would reflect the substantive innovations of the European Rules and guarantee the real provision of socio-economic rights of convicts during the period of serving criminal sentences.

3. Penitentiary personnel, who are responsible for facilitating the realization by convicts of their rights to education, profession, work and decent pay for it, and health care, do not possess knowledge of the requirements of international standards and rules, and do not undergo specialized human rights training.

4. Personnel have low competence and professional training, often do not know how to work with convicts, and demonstrate mostly (as the survey of convicts and direct observations of personnel attitude towards them during monitoring show) either a formal, indifferent attitude to the rights, interests, and needs of convicts, or simply neglect them, or abuse their official position, manifesting corrupt actions.

5. Unfortunately, the personnel of penal institutions are not motivated towards high-quality performance of official duties and a moral attitude towards convicts, their rights and needs (this is also explained by inadequate working conditions of personnel and their pay, complete dependence on the management link of the criminal-executive service, lack of clear social guarantees, and the unconditional adherence to them by the management).

6. The material and technical base of penal institutions is extremely low, materially and morally outdated, and neglected, which does not create any conditions for the full and high-quality realization of the right of convicts to work and receive remuneration from it, to obtain a truly full general education or a vocational trade that is in demand in the labour market, to protect their health, to prevent its deterioration and the spread of infectious diseases, or to receive timely and quality medical care.

7. Working on equipment from the 60s and 70s and insufficient workloads do not allow convicts to receive decent payment for it, which significantly diminishes motivation to work. The vocational trades that a convict can obtain are limited to the capabilities of the production of the correctional institution, and the lack of a modern technical base of vocational-technical schools does not allow providing the convict, at their request, with such a trade that would help them get employed after release from punishment and ensure a decent life in freedom.

8. It cannot be claimed, as the management of the State Department for the Execution of Sentences constantly declares, that convicts who study in general educational institutions at correctional facilities receive a truly full and quality general education in accordance with the programs of general secondary schools of the Ministry of Education and Science of Ukraine. In the absence of an elementary educational base and specialized subject classrooms, a sufficient list of modern educational and artistic literature, didactic, methodological, and visual aids, not to mention modern teaching methods and the possession of them by pedagogical staff, the quality of teacher training and their motivation to teach criminals with significant pedagogical neglect and criminal contagion, antisocial morality and behaviour, and different (very polar compared to general secondary schools in society) levels of mental development and degree of education is out of the question (even in educational colonies for minors) regarding the completeness of mastering curricula and programs of general secondary schools, especially through evening schools and consultation centres.

9. Particular complaint among convicts is caused by the state of medical provision and the issue of health protection. Most complaints were expressed by convicts regarding the low qualification, indifference of medical personnel, and ignoring the needs of convicts for medical care, the lack of necessary medicines, and the impossibility of obtaining timely and proper medical care (and this is under conditions of the spread of tuberculosis, HIV/AIDS, hepatitis, and other infectious diseases, not to mention typical somatic diseases).

10. The main reasons that hinder the realization of the socio-economic rights of convicts, in our opinion, are:

· insufficient budget funding for the needs of the State Criminal-Executive Service in health care for convicts, modernization of the material and technical base of correctional institutions (production, general secondary schools and vocational-technical schools, medical units, communal-household and sanitary-hygienic spheres, etc.), utilization of convict labour, and their general educational and professional training;

· insufficient correspondence of criminal-executive legislation and penitentiary practice to international standards of treatment of convicts and the European Prison Rules;

· absence of real state comprehensive programs for bringing the conditions of holding convicts into compliance with international norms;

· low professionalism, indifference to human rights, lack of motivation, and lack of interest in general of penitentiary personnel at all levels of management (from the service leadership, bodies, and penal institutions to ordinary employees) in carrying out fundamental reforms of all components of the criminal-executive system, and preparing competent and moral cadres;

· substituting real actions with constant declarations, words, and promises; unwillingness to carry out an objective and principled audit of the practical activities and problems of the system and offer the state and society concrete paths and mechanisms for ensuring the reform of the service based on the principle of unconditional observance of the rights of convicts and facilitating the realization of their rights and interests.

Proposals and recommendations

1. Develop proposals for making amendments and additions to the Criminal-Executive Code of Ukraine with the aim of strengthening legislative guarantees for ensuring the socio-economic rights of convicts according to the requirements of the UN Standard Minimum Rules for the Treatment of Prisoners and the European Prison Rules (for example, regarding the possibility of obtaining quality secondary, professional, and higher education, including through paid services (Article 107 of the Code), for compensation for damages from illness in a penal institution or loss of health due to the non-provision of timely medical care or inadequate medical service for convicts (Articles 8 and 107 of the Code)).

2. Make amendments to regulatory documents of the State Department of Ukraine for the Execution of Sentences that regulate the realization of the right of convicts to work and decent pay for it, working conditions, education, professional training, and health care, according to the requirements of the new European Prison Rules adopted in 2006.

3. Ensure the implementation in all institutions of the State Criminal-Executive Service of laws regarding payment for labour, including adherence to minimum legislative guarantees in this sphere.

4. It is advisable to develop a training program on human rights (the ‘ensuring socio-economic rights of convicts’ aspect) and conduct training for employees of social-psychological and medical services, production personnel, pedagogical staff, teachers, and masters of vocational-technical schools of penal institutions both within the framework of professional training, retraining, and qualification improvement, and directly within the framework of official training, which is carried out in institutions on a permanent basis.

5. It is necessary to conduct a thorough analysis and inventory of the material and technical base of penal institutions (production base, medical equipment and provision, working conditions of convicts, training and obtaining a trade), publish an objective picture of this state, and seek mandatory hearing of the analysis results at a meeting of the Government of Ukraine.

6. With the participation of scientists, develop well-founded and realistic comprehensive programs for improving the state of material and technical provision of penal institutions, the implementation of which would create normal conditions for work, proper health protection, education, and professional training of convicts, and with the assistance of the public, seek their adoption and the allocation of budget funds for the implementation of such programs.

7. It would be appropriate to remove medical services and medical personnel from under the subordination of bodies of execution of sentences and place the responsibility for ensuring the health protection of convicts on the Ministry of Health. Such proposals have been voiced and substantiated repeatedly; they fully correspond to the practice adopted in foreign penitentiary systems. Only with such re-subordination can one speak about the independence of medical personnel from the certified heads of penal institutions (until now, the heads of medical services, hospitals, and units are certified persons and depend on the orders and instructions of the heads of bodies and institutions of the criminal-executive service, as a result of which objective information about the real state of morbidity of convicts or a specific individual can be hidden, abuses, irrational expenditure of funds on medicines, corruption manifestations, and neglect of the rights of convicts to the protection of their health are possible).

8. Jointly with the Ministry of Labour and Social Policy, its regional administrations and departments for social adaptation of citizens released from places of deprivation of liberty, and regional employment centres, analyse the needs of the labour market for blue-collar trades and orient the professional training of convicts specifically in these directions, rather than limiting ourselves only to the possibilities of the production of correctional colonies and a minimised choice of trades. Legally and normatively define the possibility for convicts to receive paid services for professional training.

9. Jointly with the Ministry of Education and Science, analyse the educational and methodological provision and quality of general educational training of convicts of different categories (by age, degree of pedagogical neglect, persons with mental disabilities, etc.), the correspondence of the educational base, programs, content, and methodology of teaching to the requirements of the Ministry of Education with the aim, through the adoption of an appropriate government program, of truly ensuring an appropriate level of general educational preparation of convicts, providing them (at their desire) the opportunity to receive paid educational services and accessible education in higher educational institutions by means of correspondence or distance forms.

10. Involve public organizations, public, custodial, and supervisory councils that take care of the observance of the rights of convicted persons, for independent assessment of the state of ensuring the realization of the rights of convicts to health protection, education, profession, work, and decent pay, social guarantees of convicts, and presenting these results to local authorities with the aim of attracting local opportunities and the potential of the public for providing assistance to correctional colonies on these issues.

11. The administration of penal institutions should carry out periodic surveys of convicted persons (including anonymous ones) in order to obtain their opinions regarding the possibilities of satisfying their needs and rights in the sphere of education, professional training, health safety, work, social protection, etc., and react promptly to the complaints and wishes of convicts (of course, given the presence of possibilities for this or the creation of such possibilities).

At the very least, the results of the conducted monitoring attest to the dominance of typical complaints and expressions of convicts, their disbelief in the possibility of improving the situation, and distrust of penitentiary personnel. Even if one considers that there is enough bias and subjectivity among the opinions of convicts, nevertheless their views cannot be neglected, as this only deepens the confrontation between them and the employees of the colonies. And there can only be one way out – not to be indifferent, to be able to listen to convicts, to correctly explain the state of things to them, to treat them humanely, and by one's actions, to really facilitate the realization of their rights, guaranteed both by the legislation of Ukraine and by the international obligations of Ukraine in the sphere of observance of international standards for the treatment of prisoners. Only such an approach will contribute to the softening of the social-psychological climate in penal institutions and will set convicted persons towards correction and return to socially-normative behaviour in society after release from punishment.