Pa r t i I .
Last year, the employees of the OHRD noted that there was a significant
increase in the number of bunk beds with ladders and safety rails. They were available in each establishment, while the number of cells equipped with them was
steadily increasing.
The representatives of the Mechanism found that infirmary premises in four
penitentiary establishments were not adjusted to the needs of persons with disabilities52.
3. Juvenile establishments
3.1. Necessity to draw up a new Act on juvenile delinquency proceedings
The representatives of the NPM uphold their position on the necessity to
draw up a new Act on juvenile delinquency proceedings. The problem was described
in the Report of 2013, indicating issues that need to be urgently regulated in a legal
act of statutory rank, i.e. access of juveniles to medical care (including access to specialist care as regards pregnant juveniles), their contact with parents/legal guardians
and an attorney (including telephone contact), performing personal searches in juvenile detention centres, using CCTV surveillance in places of detention for juveniles53.
3.2. Testing for the presence of alcohol and drugs in the organism
One systemic problem is testing charges of youth care centres, juvenile detention centres and juvenile shelters for the presence of alcohol and drugs in the
organism54.
Personnel of these institutions, under their social rehabilitation activity, is
responsible for, among others, preventing and counteracting the purchase and
consumption of alcoholic beverages, drugs and psychotropic substances by charges. In the course of the visits of the NPM, it was found that, for this purpose,
educators or nurses in certain establishments carry out testing for the presence of
alcohol, drugs or psychotropic substances in the organism of the juveniles.
Not undermining the legitimacy of diagnostic testing in case of suspicion
that persons placed in these establishments are under the influence of alcohol or
other substances, it should be noted that no testing, regardless of its complexity,
should be carried out when those performing it are not explicitly authorised by law
PTDCs in Łódź and Warsaw-Białołęka, Prs in Łowicz and Potulice.
Cf. Report of 2013, pp. 64-69.
54
The issue was also addressed in previous Reports – not as a systemic problem, but in
chapters on areas requiring improvement in YCCs and JDCs.
52
53
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