electrical and ventilation installations were included in the budget
request for 2016. The construction work to separate the toilet area
from the rest of the holding cell will be performed before
1 January 2017 in any case. Inmate cells must have separate toilet
facilities by this date at the latest in order to comply with the
Penitentiary System Act. Replacement of the furniture was also
promised for the 2016 budget year.
The prison warden ordered that places for sitting and reclining be
provided. One holding cell was expressly designated as a nonsmoking area. If necessary, additional cells can be adapted to
become non-smoking areas at any time. The Federal Ministry of
Justice further states that, as a first step, it has been ordered that
holding cells shall only be for single occupancy. Occupancy by more
than one person will only be permitted in exceptional cases, e.g. when
it is unavoidable because numerous persons will be brought before
the judge, or single occupancy is out of the question due to the
detainee’s status according to the Viennese Instrument for Suicidality
in Correctional Institutions.
Places for sitting and
reclining were also
installed
The NPM took positive note of the emergency measures and the
measures announced for 2016. However, at the same time, it was
emphasised that the work to spatially separate the toilet area must be
carried out as soon as possible and without delay. Moreover, it was
stressed that, in order to implement the measures, it must be ensured
that the holding cells are only occupied by one person. Occupancy by
multiple persons waiting to be brought before the judge must be
avoided.
Only single occupancy
until further notice
According to additional feedback from the Ministry, the relevant actors
were urged to make an advance plan to prevent multiple occupancies
in the holding cells until the adaptation measures have been
implemented.
When the holding cells at the Innsbruck correctional institution are occupied by more than
one person, the lack of a partition around the toilets violates the requirement to protect
human dignity.
The NPM advocates that a privacy screen and an odour barrier separate the sanitary
facilities from the rest of the cell in all holding cells at the Innsbruck correctional institution.
Holding cells must also have sufficient light to read and permit the entry of daylight.
In accordance with Section 103 (4) of the Penitentiary System Act, the
Innsbruck correctional institution disposes of eleven regular holding
cells and one specially secured cell in the basement of the Regional
Court. The commission observed that this specially secured inmate cell
has no proper toilet, but only a standing toilet integrated into the floor.
Furthermore no furnishings are available to sit or recline. When an
inmate cell (in accordance with Section 103 of the Penitentiary System
Act) is used because the inmate is a danger to himself or others, no
chair can be placed in the cell for safety reasons. As a result the
person held there must sit on the floor.
No furnishings in the
specially secured
inmate cell
112
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