C APPENDIX Dnr O 7-2018 has been directed at Sweden for the isolation of inmates and previous statements from the Parliamentary Ombudsmen. Some basic principles and concepts Inmates held on remand have – just like inmates in a prison – the right to associate with other inmates during the day (chap. 2 § 5 of the Remand Prisons Act [2010:611] and chap. 6 § 1 of the Prisons Act [2010:610]). The Prison and Probation Service is able to limit this right in certain situations specified in the two pieces of legislation. The agency is not able to further restrict or limit the right of association.4 The legislation lacks a definition of the concept of association. However, I have previously stated that association can be considered to presuppose that one inmate spends time with several other inmates. This means that, for example, co-sitting (when two inmates spend time together) cannot be seen as association.5 The Prison and Probation Service can, in accordance with chap. 2 § 5 of the Remand Prisons Act, refuse an inmate the right to associate with other inmates in three situations, namely if 1. an inmate is placed in a different custodial facility than a remand prison and the physical design of the facility do not allow for association between inmates, 2. for security reasons it is necessary to keep an inmate segregated from other inmates, or 3. it is necessary to carry out a body search. Furthermore, a prosecutor can request a court's permission to set restrictions upon an inmate (chap. 24 § 5 a, first paragraph of the Code of Judicial Procedure). These restrictions may include, inter alia, restrictions on an inmate's right to associate with other inmates (chap. 6 § 2 of the Remand Prisons Act). An inmate who is not given this opportunity to associate with other inmates is considered segregated. In order to satisfy the right of association with one another for inmates who are not segregated, the Prison and Probation Service has a number of association remand prisons. These remand prisons are usually established in former prisons. The situation for inmates in an association remand prison is very similar to the conditions in a prison, and this means, inter alia, that inmates can associate for large parts of the day in an association department or, for example, in a production area.6 Some other remand prisons also have association See the Parliamentary Ombudsmen 2018/19 p. 146 and especially pp. 157 and 158. See for example JO 2018/19 p. 146. Cf. the observations during the inspection of Helsingborg Remand Prison, Berga Remand Prison Branch (The Parliamentary Ombudsmen’s report dnr O 39-2019). 4 5 6 – 84 – Page 3 (21)