7.1. Experiences of the visits conducted in 2015
The experience gained from the visit has shown that the institution’s
protocol failed to comply with the relevant legal regulations on several
issues (ordering, way of duration, duty to notify, documentation and revision regulations),98 and staff members had filled the forms on the application of restrictive measure inadequately and failed to forward them to the
patients’ rights representative in time on several occasions.
In Building ‘B’ of the Juvenile Penitentiary Institution99 the gross floor
space of the cells used for the safety or disciplinary isolation100 of inmates
did not reach six square meters,101 and several cells had no adequate lighting and ventilation.
Several isolation cells lacked washbasins. In those cells, water flowed
from the taps directly into the lavatory bowls. Not only were the walls
of the isolation cells dilapidated, but my colleagues also saw cockroaches
and bedbugs. In the absence of an emergency notification system, the
inmates in the cells could signal to the guards only shouting or knocking.
In my report on the visit, I have pointed out that the domestic regulations
on the solitary confinement of juveniles102 are in violation of Clause 67 of
the Havana Rules.
The inspection of the Zita Home for Children with Special Needs, operated by the Child Protection Directorate of Somogy County,103 established
that the isolation room used for segregating children demonstrating immediately dangerous behavior was unsafe.
Although the staff claimed that the children’s personal liberty was not
restricted in any way in the institution, most of the children mentioned a
so-called “isolation period” after reception, during which–for a period spanning from one week to one month–they could not leave the premises of
the institution. In the case of two children, during this isolation period, the
198
198
199
100
101
102
103
See Section 101/A, Subsection (2) of Minister of Health, Social and Family Affairs Decree No.
1/2000 (I. 7.) SzCsM on Professional Tasks and Conditions for Operation of Institutions Providing Personal Care.
See Report AJB-1423/2015.
Provisions on security isolation: Section 146 of Act CCXL of 2013 on the execution of punishments, criminal measures, certain coercive measures and confinement for administrative
offences; Section 52 of Minister of Justice Decree 16/2014 (XII. 19.) on the Detailed Rules of
Confinement Replacing Prison Sentencing, Confinement, Pretrial Detention and Disciplinary
Fines; Section 13, Subsection (1) of Minister of Justice Decree 14/2014 (XII. 17.) IM on the Disciplinary Responsibility of Inmates and other Detainees held in Penitentiary Institutions.
Pursuant to Section 121, Subsection (3) of the Prison Rules prevailing at the time of the visit,
in the case of individual placement the floor-space of the cell or room shall reach six square
meters and, according to Subsection (2), when calculating living space, the space occupied by
furnishing and equipment should be deducted from the floor-space of the cell or room.
See Section 193, Subsection (4) of the Prison Act.
See Report AJB-704/2016.
47
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