Report of the HRD on the activities of the National Preventive Mechanism in Poland in 2011
brought to sober up – which constitutes an Annex to the Ordinance of the Minister of the
Interior and Administration of 13 October 2008, mentioned above.
In the amended Ordinance of MoIA of 11 May 2011 on detailed conditions of using
tobacco products in the premises and in the means of transport by persons subordinate to
the minister competent for internal affairs111, the legislator has introduced, on the basis of
the Act of 8 April 2010 on amending the Act on protecting health against the consequences of using tobacco and tobacco products and of the Act on State Sanitary Inspection112,
the possibility for employees of Police units to smoke tobacco products only in dedicated
rooms meeting the conditions of a smoking room provided for in the Act of 8 April 2010
on amending the Act on protecting health against the consequences of using tobacco and
tobacco products (§3(1) of the Ordinance).
As regards detained persons staying in PDRs, the legislator confirmed the binding power of the right to smoke tobacco, resulting from the Rules of procedure mentioned above,
and allowed for its realisation in designated rooms for detainees, on condition of good
ventilation. In the opinion of the NPM, the regulation included in the analysed Ordinance and referring directly to detained persons is consistent with the provision in
Article §(9) of the Rules of procedure. The National Preventive Mechanism is therefore
of the opinion that the amendment of the Ordinance does not result in the prohibition
to use tobacco products by detained persons staying in PDRs. As a consequence, the
Mechanism believes that in the context of the provisions in force, smoking bans for detainees introduced in some of the visited PDRs (Sławno, Kętrzyn, Bydgoszcz) are groundless.
The managements of PDRs, where the NPM recommended to provide special areas
for smoking, shared the NPM’s arguments, and informed that such areas have been designated or that actions have been undertaken to obtain funds necessary to establish smoking
rooms. In their answers the Commanders of Police units where the NPM revealed during its visits the existence of a smoking ban for the detainees have promised to designate
special areas for smoking rooms as soon as fund for a refurbishment (Bydgoszcz) or for
expansion (Sławno) are obtained).
Following the visits, the National Preventive Mechanism recommended to:
• Make general refurbishments;
• Provide the lacking accommodation equipment;
• Provide all persons detained and placed in PDRs with sleeping sets;
• Provide conditions ensuring intimacy of detained persons when they use toilets
and showers;
• Equip toilets for detainees with soaps and paper towels;
• Designate a place where detainees could use tobacco products.
Dz. U. of 2011 r. No 97 item 564.
Dz. U. of 2010 r. No 81, item 529.
111
112
64
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