The Department has introduced a visitation tax

The Simferopol pre-trial detention centre is refusing to follow the instructions of its management. This was reported to the Crimean Regional Committee of the All-Ukrainian Public Organisation ‘Centre for the Protection of Human Rights “FREEDOM”’ by human rights activist Vadym Bliznyuk.
Previously, the public organisation appealed to the prosecutor’s office and the Antimonopoly Committee of Ukraine with a statement regarding the extortion of money from citizens who had come to the pre-trial detention centre to deliver food or to visit their loved ones with the investigator’s permission. Staff at the detention centre demand that such individuals purchase special application forms at a clearly inflated price. As people have no choice, they are forced to submit to the demands of the extortionists.
After the complaints were submitted, the head of the Crimean Department of the State Penitentiary Service informed the human rights activists that the purchase of these forms is not mandatory and that citizens, due to financial hardship, may refuse to purchase them, which will not affect the receipt of food parcels in any way.
During an experiment conducted by members of the public organisation at the detention centre, it was revealed that the letter from the head of the Crimean Executive System, V.V. Bulgakov, serves as no instruction at all to the detention centre officials. A citizen who declared their financial hardship and consequently refused to purchase the form was denied the ability to hand over the parcel.
A complaint regarding this fact has been sent to the head of the Department of the Penitentiary Service in the ARC, V.V. Bulgakov, and his response will be forwarded to the Antimonopoly Committee of Ukraine.

Press group of the project ‘Regional Human Rights Group “CRIMEAN PENINSULA”’