with lawyers take place in the office of the detention supervisor, who in such cases leaves the
room. The detention supervisor's office has no bars on the window.
As in the detention unit of the Split-Dalmatia County Police Administration, police officers
are present during medical examinations. Rooms are generally in order, have artificial
lighting, but natural light is very weak. Each room has two mattresses (one on a wooden base
and, when required, one on the floor). Heating, cooling and ventilation are provided by an airconditioner.
2.2. Making proposals and observations concerning the existing laws and other regulations
or their drafts
Making proposals and observations concerning the existing laws and regulations or their
drafts in order to promote the protection of persons deprived of their liberty from torture and
other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment is undoubtedly one of the key
NPM activities. By encouraging amendments to the existing and adoption of new regulations,
we are trying to promote systematic solutions of observed problems and thus prevent future
potential violations of the rights of persons deprived of their liberty. However, with regard to
this segment of our activities, we find it necessary to point out that sometimes, because of the
volume or significance of proposed amendments, the time-limits for delivery of the opinion
on particular draft regulations are too short. This prevents a systematic, analytical approach to
some subject matters, which certainly has negative effects considering that our initiatives are
directed at preventing one of the worst forms of human rights' violations.
Act on Amendments to the Execution of Prison Sentences Act
As the EPSA regulates the execution of prison sentences and, inter alia, prescribes the rights
of prisoners and instruments for their protection, any amendment to that Act is considered to
be exceptionally important. Within the procedure of adopting the Act on Amendments to the
EPSA, we have supported the introduction of a new instrument for the protection of prisoners'
rights – filing a complaint with the executing judge. However, considering the number of
complaints from prisoners related to the duration of procedure by the executing judges, we
proposed that a statutory time-limit of 30 days should be prescribed, in which the executing
judge must respond to a complaint. In addition, we have disagreed with the proposed deletion
of the provision prescribing the spatial standards for accommodation (4m2 and 10m3), as it
clearly arises from the European Court of Human Rights' case law that, when examining
accommodation conditions and potential violations of Article 3 of the European Convention
for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms, the Court considers 4 m2 as
the minimum standard (e.g. Kalashnikov v. Russia (2003) and Cenbauer v. Croatia (2006)).
Moreover, according to the CPT standards, 4 m² is the minimum requirement for living space
per prisoner in multi-occupancy cells. Both of our proposals were accepted.
Act on Amendments to the Criminal Procedure Act
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