Rooms for detained persons
cal examination should be to establish whether the said person may stay in the
PDR or whether he/she should be, for example, in hospital where specialist care
is provided.
The current legal regulations on medical examination of persons detained by
the Police do not take into consideration the recommendations of the CPT, which
in its report for the Polish Government from its 2004 visit to Poland recommended ensuring that all new arrivals are medically screened without delay and that the
establishments receive regular visits by a doctor or a nurse119. This is supported by
international recommendations120.
In her motion to the Police Commander-in-Chief121, the Human Rights Defender pointed to the necessity to ensure medical examination of all detainees. The
issue was not resolved as recommended by the Defender, and thus the NPM will
continue to monitor the issue to find whether other powers of the Human Rights
Defender may be used.
In addition, the said solution must be changed, since the medical examination of certain individuals interferes with the privacy of an individual and as such
should be regulated by a statutory act.
3. Insufficient personnel in PDRs.
The representatives of the National Preventive Mechanism believe that the
Order No 130 of the Police Commander-in-Chief of 7 August 2012 on the methods and the form of performing tasks in the room for detained persons or persons
brought to sober up should also be amended. Pursuant to Article 2(2) of the Order,
the head of the unit shall organise the service so that there is as least one police
officer on duty in the room.
In practice, it is frequently the case that one police officer is on duty at the
PDR and he/she is, at the same time, a deputy for the duty officer at the Police
headquarters and has to perform certain duties ordered by the latter. It is physically impossible for one person to ensure safety and control in the detention room.
While performing certain duties, such as admitting a detained person, the police
officer will not be able to notice an accident, which may occur in one of the rooms,
Article 44 CPT (2005)3.
Pursuant to Rule 24 of the Body of Principles for the Protection of All Persons under any Form of
Detention or Imprisonment (Resolution of the General Assembly of the UN No 43/173 of 9 December 1988) a proper medical examination shall be offered to a detained or imprisoned person as promptly
as possible after his admission to the place of detention or imprisonment, and thereafter medical care and
treatment shall be provided whenever necessary. This care and treatment shall be provided free of charge.
121
RPO-687961-VII/11, http://www.sprawy-generalne.brpo.gov.pl/szczegoly.php?pismo=1625408.
119
120
63
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