26 THE GREEK OMBUDSMAN a new strategic objective is developed, covering a broader spectrum of ensuring and reinforcing prisoners’ rights. In this context, ensuring the conditions necessary for information and exercising of prisoners’ rights is suggested, as provided for in the Penitentiary Code and in articles 31 and 32 of the Internal Regulation for the Operation of General Detention Facilities Type A and B (Ministerial Decree 58819/7.4.2003, Official Gazette Β’463/ 17.4.2003), as well as offering legal aid under article 33 of the abovementioned Regulation. In addition, prisoners should be informed of the possibility of a recommendation by the Disciplinary Council to replace a prison sentence with community service (article 29(6) of the Regulation). It is specifically suggested that a very important informative leaflet issued by the General Directorate of Criminal Policy, titled “Prisoner’s alphabet”, is distributed to all incoming prisoners (awaiting trial or convicted). d. – The Ombudsman proposes, that all prisoners’ requests to the Facility’s administration should be taken into serious consideration and the administration’s response should be subject to evaluation, e.g. the number of requests for transfer to a safe location could be indicative of the quality of prisoners’ relationships, as well as of their sense of security in detention. Concerning the content of prisoners’ mail addressed to the Ombudsman or the Inspectors Body or other control mechanisms, parallel to security, unhindered access to those institutions should be ensured, guaranteeing the free submission of complaints and investigation requests. 2. - Regarding objective 4.2 “Development of human resources – staff training – management”: a. – There is a reference to “regular 6monthly meetings with Prison Directors”, to “determining and defining roles/synergies”, to “creation of a Security Council in prisons” etc., in a totally vague and unclear manner, as neither the participants of those “meetings” and “synergies” nor their content is specified or in any way described. Specifically regarding the intention of creating “a Security Council in prisons” (repeated in objective 4.5), the Ombudsman considers it necessary to include justification of the purpose of such a body, a definition of its mission and a description of its competence and authority. Moreover, apart from prison Directors’ meetings with central administration, setting weekly or bi-weekly staff meetings (per function and/or in total) within each Detention Facility, is of equal importance. b. – The establishment of a School for Penitentiary Staff is deemed absolutely essential, so that security personnel training takes on a permanent and regular character, both before assumption of their duties and during its exercise (initial / further training) and is not limited to the occasional

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