Epress.am News from Armenia
As a vulnerable group, convicts in Armenia are neglected both by society and the state. After being released from prison, they, as a rule, are unable to find work, have lost their professional skills, and in some cases, their families are broken. As a result, former inmates may end up returning to the penal system, according to a new report by the Armenian Helsinki Committee titled "Imprisonment or Torment? Life in Penal Institutions" based on a study on the life in Armenia's penal institutions.
Findings from the survey among 33 former prisoners concerning prison cell conditions, the quality and quantity of the food, privileges, and other issues show that even the most basic conditions are absent in Armenian prisons: "We were 13 in a cell that was meant to hold 8 inmates," said one inmate, while another said: "In Sovetashen [i.e. Nubarashen prison] the toilet facility was inside and open, and persons occupying the third tier beds could see you. Therefore, we used a bed sheet as a makeshift cover for the toilet facility. However, we had to pay for it every week so that the inspectors would not tear the bed sheet away."
Opinions regarding the food were almost identical: "it was food for dogs" and "had it not been for the food brought from outside the prison, the inmates would have starved to death."
The majority of respondents said privileges were given to inmates who have money and "the first tier guys":
"Those individuals who were rich or members of organized crime (most importantly those of them who received assistance from their groups outside the prison) enjoyed those privileges […] There is a store in the penal colony where prices are twice as high as in stores outside the colony […] One could also purchase erotic magazines; their prices varied ranging from 5,000 to 10,000 AMD. The price depended on the content and on what kind of pictures were in the magazine…"
Many of the respondents were displeased with the quality of medical services, saying the doctor visited them only if they were in dire condition: "They [medical personnel] would come very rarely and would give only cheap medication, may be (who knows?) even after the expiry date."
One inmate said: "I got serious stomach problems because of poor quality of prison food. I often had a need of a medical checkup but it would take me a lot of effort to talk them into getting me a doctor […] A man would have to almost die for them to provide necessary medical assistance but it would be [too] late."
Asked what kinds of punishment were used, respondents mostly mentioned a punishment cell, a truncheon and beatings. One respondent mentioned electroshock.
The authors of the report, who studied several other issues besides prison conditions, concluded that penal institutions are overcrowded (sometimes the actual number of inmates in cells is double or triple that stipulated by the regulations); in some cases inmates bathe less than once a week; they get food, bedclothes, and hygienic items from their friends and families; healthcare services are inadequate; inmates' close relatives are able to visit them often when they pay money or have useful contacts; and communication with the outside world is done through pay phones and mobile phones (though the latter are prohibited, many inmates have them).
The report concludes with three recommendations: (1) the Ministry of Justice should be authorized and responsible for penal institutions. To ensure complete responsibility, the head of the penal institutions division has to be appointed by the justice minister; (2) penal institutions should not admit new inmates when the limit has been reached, regardless of the court's decision; and (3) to ensure new mentality and a generational change of penal institutions staff, a special department focusing on human rights in penal institutions should be established at Yerevan State University.