Draft of the new Regulation on Supervisory Commissions
The human rights organisation “Donetsk Memorial” has been insisting for several years on the need to update the Regulation on Supervisory Commissions. Together with the Ministry of Justice, it has developed a draft of the updated Regulation.
Finally, this need has also been felt in the Cabinet of Ministers. Therefore, in the Action Plan for the implementation of the Concept of Social Adaptation of Persons Who Have Served a Sentence of Deprivation of Liberty for a Specific Term, approved by the Cabinet of Ministers Order No. 740-r dated 01.07.2009, Clause 2 provides for the development of an updated version of the Regulation.
It is worth emphasising that one of the main problems in the activities of supervisory commissions is the practical absence of financial support for their work. Therefore, the opportunities that the regulatory framework in the field of providing assistance to persons released from places of imprisonment provides to supervisory commissions are often impossible to realise due to the lack of financial capabilities. The Law of Ukraine ‘On Social Adaptation of Persons Who Have Served a Sentence of Restriction of Liberty or Deprivation of Liberty for a Specific Term’ is extremely important and relevant, but without financial support, its norms often remain merely declarations.
The text of the draft updated Regulation is provided below.
DRAFT
REGULATION
on supervisory commissions
1. This Regulation defines the tasks, functions, powers, and procedure for the formation of supervisory commissions, which are established by the executive committees of territorial units at the location of bodies and institutions of execution of sentences.
2. Supervisory commissions in their activities are guided by the Constitution of Ukraine, the Criminal-Executive Code of Ukraine, the Laws of Ukraine “On Local Self-Government in Ukraine”, “On Local State Administrations”, other legislative acts, and this Regulation.
3. The main tasks of supervisory commissions are:
1) organisation and implementation of public control over the observance of human rights, fundamental freedoms, and legal interests of convicts and persons released from serving a sentence;
2) assistance to bodies and institutions of execution of sentences in creating proper conditions for the detention of convicts, and attracting public organisations, executive bodies, local self-government bodies, enterprises, institutions, and organisations regardless of their form of ownership, and citizens to this activity;
3) provision of assistance in social adaptation to persons released from serving a sentence.
4. In accordance with the assigned tasks, supervisory commissions:
1) approve resolutions and motions made and filed by institutions of execution of sentences regarding:
changes in the conditions of detention of convicts within one closed-type criminal-executive institution (hereinafter referred to as a correctional colony) or in connection with their transfer to a correctional colony of a different security level, if the resolution or motion provides for an increase in the scope of established legal restrictions for convicts and more severe conditions of detention;
revocation of the permission to reside outside the correctional colony granted to convicted women for the time of release from work in connection with pregnancy and childbirth, as well as until the child reaches the age of three;
2) together with the bodies and institutions of execution of sentences, file motions to the court at the place where the convicts are serving their sentences regarding:
parole from serving a sentence or substitution of the unserved part of the sentence with a milder one;
release from serving a sentence for pregnant women and women who have children under the age of three;
3) assist the administration of institutions of execution of sentences in attracting public organisations, executive bodies, local self-government bodies, enterprises, institutions, and organisations regardless of their form of ownership, and citizens to provide assistance in creating proper conditions for the detention of convicts;
4) carry out measures of social patronage for persons released from serving a sentence, and facilitate the development of a network of social adaptation centres and other institutions and organisations whose activities are aimed at providing these persons with assistance in social adaptation;
5) perform other functions in accordance with the legislation.
5. Supervisory commissions formed by regional, Kyiv, and Sevastopol city state administrations, in addition to the tasks and functions defined in points 3 and 4 of this Regulation:
1) develop and carry out measures within the region, the cities of Kyiv and Sevastopol regarding public control over the observance of human rights, fundamental freedoms, and legal interests of convicts and persons released from serving a sentence, and facilitate bodies and institutions of execution of sentences in providing assistance in social adaptation to persons released from serving a sentence;
2) organise training for members of district supervisory commissions;
3) provide methodological assistance to district supervisory commissions, monitor their activities, and summarise and disseminate the positive experience of their work;
4) in cases of the temporary absence of any local supervisory commission, perform its functions until this supervisory commission is elected.
6. Supervisory commissions have the right to:
1) instruct members of the commission to:
visit institutions of execution of sentences, study the state of material, living, and medical-sanitary provision of convicts, the conditions of their work and study, and the state of the organisation of social-educational work;
participate in the meetings of commissions of institutions of execution of sentences during the consideration of issues regarding the filing of motions to the court for the parole of convicts from serving a sentence, substitution of the unserved part of the sentence with a milder one, and release from serving a sentence for pregnant women and women who have children under the age of three;
2) submit petitions for the pardon of convicts and express their opinion on the substance of the pardon petition submitted by a convict through a body or institution of execution of sentences;
3) receive from public organisations, executive bodies, local self-government bodies, bodies and institutions of execution of sentences, and enterprises, institutions, and organisations regardless of their form of ownership the information and documents necessary for the performance of the tasks assigned to the supervisory commissions;
4) conduct personal reception of convicts, consider their appeals, and make decisions on them;
5) hear at their meetings, on issues within the competence of the supervisory commissions, information from officials of bodies and institutions of execution of sentences, and enterprises, institutions, and organisations regardless of their form of ownership, and submit proposals for improving their activities on issues of observance of the rights and legal interests of convicts;
6) submit for consideration by executive bodies and local self-government bodies proposals regarding:
improving the activities of bodies and institutions of execution of sentences on issues of observance of human rights, fundamental freedoms, and legal interests of convicts;
organisation of employment and living arrangements for persons released from serving a sentence, and facilitating their social adaptation, including assistance in determining premises or addresses (possibly without the right of residence in them) to ensure temporary registration of persons released from places of imprisonment;
ensuring the legal and social protection of the personnel of bodies and institutions of execution of sentences;
for the exercise of their powers by members of the supervisory commission, they are granted permanent passes to visit institutions of execution of sentences;
while exercising their powers, supervisory commissions are not entitled to interfere in the operational-service activities of bodies and institutions of execution of sentences.
7. The composition of supervisory commissions includes representatives of public organisations, executive bodies, local self-government bodies, enterprises, institutions, and organisations regardless of their form of ownership, and citizens.
Representatives of public organisations and the public must constitute at least half of the commission's composition.
8. Judges, representatives of the prosecutor's office, justice bodies, internal affairs bodies, the security service, the State Criminal-Executive Service, lawyers, and persons who have an unexpunged or unremoved conviction in the manner established by law cannot be members of supervisory commissions.
9. The chairperson and secretary of the supervisory commission are appointed by the body that formed it.
10. A supervisory commission is formed for a term of three years. The body that creates the supervisory commission informs the media about the termination of the commission's powers and the formation of its new composition no later than three months before this. The formation of the composition of the supervisory commission takes place openly.
Enterprises, institutions, and organisations, including public organisations, wishing to include their representatives in the composition of the commission, submit relevant proposals to this body, signed by the head of the enterprise or a decision of the governing body of the organisation.
Individual citizens submit applications signed personally.
The body that creates the supervisory commission may propose representatives of enterprises, institutions, organisations, or individual citizens to join its composition.
The powers of a supervisory commission are terminated prematurely by the body that formed the commission in cases where the decisions taken by the supervisory commission contradict the current legislation and have led to a violation of the rights and legal interests of convicts or persons released from serving a sentence. The fact of such a violation must be confirmed by a competent authorised body.
11. The decision on the new composition of the supervisory commission must be published no later than one week after its adoption. Enterprises, institutions, organisations, and individual citizens whose proposals regarding candidates for the composition of the supervisory commission were rejected are provided with a motivated decision of the body that forms it.
12. The chairperson of the supervisory commission, their deputy, and members of the commission participate in its work on a voluntary basis.
The transfer of their powers by members of the commission to other persons is not permitted.
For supervisory commissions of administrative units on whose territory institutions of execution of sentences operate, the allocation of funds for the payment of the salary of the secretary of the supervisory commission from the local budget is provided.
13. The powers of a member of the supervisory commission are terminated prematurely:
1) upon their request;
2) at the request of the public organisation, executive body, local self-government body, enterprise, institution, or organisation that recommended the person for membership in the commission;
3) in connection with the entry into legal force of a guilty verdict against them;
4) in case of absence without a valid reason at four consecutive meetings of the supervisory commission.
14. The organisational form of work of the supervisory commission is meetings, which are held as needed, but at least once a month.
A meeting of the supervisory commission is considered competent if at least half of its composition is present.
15. Representatives of public organisations, executive bodies, local self-government bodies, the prosecutor's office, other law enforcement agencies, and citizens may be invited to the meeting of the supervisory commission.
16. During the consideration of materials regarding convicts at meetings of the supervisory commission, the presence of a representative of the relevant body or institution of execution of sentences is mandatory.
17. The chairperson of the supervisory commission:
1) organises the work of the commission, distributes duties among its members, gives them instructions, and monitors and checks their execution;
2) ensures the preparation and approval of the commission's work plan for the half-year (year) and defines the range of issues to be considered at the next meeting;
3) participates personally or instructs members of the commission to participate in meetings of commissions of institutions of execution of sentences, which consider issues regarding changes in the conditions of detention of convicts, their parole from serving a sentence, substitution of the unserved part of the sentence with a milder one, release from serving a sentence for pregnant women and women who have children under the age of three, and informs the members of the supervisory commission about the results;
4) represents the commission personally or instructs their deputy to represent the commission on issues within its competence in executive bodies, local self-government bodies, at enterprises, and in institutions and organisations regardless of their form of ownership;
5) ensures the informing of the public through the media about the results of the commission's activities at least once a quarter and submits an annual report to the body that formed it by 1 April.
18. The supervisory commission, on issues within its competence, makes decisions by open vote by a majority of the votes of the members of the commission present at the meeting. In case of an equal distribution of votes, the chairperson of the commission has the casting vote.
The decision of the supervisory commission is formalised by a resolution, which is signed by the chairperson of the commission.
The resolution of the supervisory commission must be considered by the relevant state structures, local self-government bodies, organisations, and enterprises regardless of their form of ownership within one month.
Based on the results of the consideration of the resolution of the supervisory commission, state structures, local self-government bodies, organisations, and enterprises regardless of their form of ownership are obliged to inform the supervisory commission in writing about the measures taken for its implementation or provide arguments explaining the reasons for its non-execution.
The resolution of the supervisory commission may be appealed to the body that formed it or to a court.
19. Organisational-technical support for the activities of the supervisory commission is assigned to the body that formed it.
20. The supervisory commission has a seal and letterhead with its name.