1.2. General overview Use of excessive force against prisoners that may amount to torture and ill-treatment occurs, although it does not appear to be on a widespread basis. Some prisons, for instance Bijeljina or Tuzla, appear to have very few problems with respect to allegations of ill-treatment, whereas in other facilities, such as Banja Luka, Foca and Zenica, interviewed prisoners have provided credible claims of ill-treatment by prison staff. Overall, nearly one-quarter of the interviewed prisoners reported that they experienced physical violence and ill-treatment at the hands of prison staff while more than 70 interviewed persons reported that they have never been subjected to violent behaviour by prison staff . The interviewed prisoners who reported mistreatment gave credible testimonies of beatings, such as being slapped in the face and punched. According to the interviewees, most of the physical mistreatment did not require medical treatment. However, medical treatment was necessary in one case where prisoners reported having been severely beaten with truncheons, which resulted in considerable injuries and additional psychological distress. 80 70 60 50 Violent behaviour of prison staff towards prisoners, as perceived by prisoners - % 40 30 20 10 0 never seldom sometimes often very often With respect to allegations of ill-treatment by prison personnel, as well as other findings that will be presented in this report, consistent differences were found between closed-type and semi-open institutions. As mentioned above, these classifications indicate differences in the level of security and regime for inmates. Closed-type institutions are for prisoners who have committed more serious crimes, and prisoners live with significantly more restrictions. There are two such facilities in the Republika Srpska (Foca and Banja Luka) and one in the Federation of BiH (Zenica). Based on Mission interviews, physical abuse appears to be significantly more prevalent in closed-type institutions. This was further confirmed to be the case by prisoners who were transferred from closed-type to semi-open facilities for the rest of their sentence. For example, half of the interviewees from Zenica Prison stated that there were cases of physical violence directed against prisoners by prison staff. The situation in the closed-type facilities tends to be exacerbated due to a combination of factors, including the lack of space, the limited activities available to inmates, and the fact that the majority of the inmates are sentenced for serious crimes. Unsurprisingly, the prison staff perceived that prisoners were being treated adequately and, by and large, did not confirm cases of excessive force. In exceptional cases, prison staff stated that unjustified incidents of physical violence do occur but only occasionally. It was interesting to note that a number of the prisoners interviewed perceived this treatment as “deserved” in some instances. 6