Ukraine has nowhere to put prisoners

As of today, the situation regarding the placement of convicts and persons in custody is extremely difficult. This was stated by the First Deputy Chairman of the State Department for the Execution of Punishments, Serhiy Sydorenko.

As the department’s press service reports, today there are more than 40,000 people in prison, while there are no more than 36,400 places based on the standard of 2.5 sq.m. of space per prisoner. The existing growth in the number of prisoners significantly complicates the problem of their placement, and their material, living, and sanitary-medical support.

At the same time, the statistics of recent years do not provide grounds for optimism and hope for a reduction in the number of prisoners. The department notes that in the period from January 2009 to April 2010, the number of prisoners increased by more than 8 thousand.

In turn, the Head of the Department for Cooperation with the State Department of Ukraine for the Execution of Punishments of the Ministry of Justice of Ukraine, Petro Kocherhan, noted that a draft law has now been prepared, which should improve the practice of applying the preventive measure in the form of taking into custody. This draft is being sent for coordination with central executive authorities.