On 12 October, Staff of the Ombudsman Office in the Donetsk People’s Republic visited Makeevka Correctional Colony of State Penitentiary Service of the DPR Ministry of Justice.
By the time of the visit, 689 convicts (men, adult) have been serving their sentences in the institution.
Staff of the Ombudsman Office met the executives of the Donetsk correctional colony and discussed prisoners’ living conditions, cultural and disciplinary issues, as well as medical treatment, education and employment of prisoners in conditions of the correctional colony.
All convicts are separated into 9 groups and kept in three-storey buildings. Wake-up time is 6 am and lights-out time is 10 pm, three meals daily. There is a canteen with a capacity of 420 persons where prisoners can take meals. There are a bakery and a subsidiary farm on the territory of the correctional colony. The food for convicts is funded by the Republican budget. There is a field kitchen powered by solid fuel. There is a centralized water supply, which is available 24 hours a day.
Special attention was paid to medical care in the Correctional Colony. There is a medical unit with medical equipment owned by the SSEP MJ of the DPR. There is a RUM-20 X-Ray, modern dental chair of Siger type, dry-air sterilizers. The medical unit is fully provided with pharmaceuticals.
In the territory of the colony, there is a club with a capacity of 450 persons, where cultural and recreational activities are conducted, as well as sports competitions (chess, table tennis, weight-lifting, arm wrestling) and watching movies through a film projector.
The correctional institution has an Orthodox church, which is visited by a priest on holidays. The church conducts baptism and communion rituals, spiritual literature is available there.
There is a school where convicts can receive a certificate of secondary education. Currently, 46 persons attend the school. There is a computer room, as well.
The convicts are allowed to work if they wish in accordance with the legislation in force in the DPR (Penal Enforcement Code of Ukraine). Within the correctional facility, there is a sewing factory, a woodshop, a metal-processing workshop, processing of secondary raw materials, souvenir shop. 46 convicts are involved in labour. The workers of the production area are provided with the necessary workwear and other personal protective equipment.
Staff of the DPR Ombudsman Office provided legal advice for convicts on issues relating to criminal procedure and clarified the procedure for filing an appeal with the Human Rights Ombudsman Office in the Donetsk People’s Republic.
Six convicts asked for legal advice on the following issues:
- Transfer to the territory of Ukraine to continue serving their sentence;
- Refusal of local courts to apply early release on parole;
- Dissatisfaction with a court verdict;
- Transfer to the Russian Federation.
As a result of the inspection, staff of DPR Ombudsman Office gave a positive assessment of detention conditions and operation of the colony.
