Report on the visit to the Juvenile and Youth Penitentiary in Craiova

Two representatives of APADOR-CH visited the Juvenile and Youth Penitentiary in Craiova (PMT Craiova) on the 1^st of June 2004. The previous visit by APADOR-CH to this institution took place in1999.

The visit was aimed at inspecting the detention conditions in the penitentiary and the re-education, schooling and professional training activities for juveniles and young detainees.

1. General aspects. Discussions with the prison management

On the day of the visit, PMT Craiova accommodated 332 detainees. One hundred of them were juveniles, 196 were between 18 and 21 years old, 34 were between 22 and 30, and two were over 30. There were no women detainees. Seven juveniles and seven young detainees were on pre-trial detention.

Detention rooms measured about 25 m² and accommodated 10-14 people each, which meant about 2 m² per detainee, compared to the 4.5 m² recommended by the CPT. Segregation criteria were observed.

A very small number of young detainees were taken out to work, at the GAZ (farm unit). At the moment of the visit only 3 detainees - of the required workforce of 30 - were employed at the GAZ, because not enough of them qualified for “no surveillance” work.

Eight detainees were considered “dangerous” and held in specially assigned rooms. The criteria for categorizing juveniles as dangerous were the nature of their crime and the behavior in prison. The “dangerous” had almost the same detention regime as the other detainees. However, they were only entitled to "cabin visits" (the detainee is closed in a glass booth with no direct contact with his visitor). They were taken out to exercise without handcuffs, in the presence of two non-commissioned officers. Outside the penitentiary, “dangerous” detainees were handcuffed and accompanied by officers. The prison management stated that under no circumstances were the new safe means of restraint during transportation imposed by the DGP (chains) used. The situation of “dangerous” detainees was analyzed by a Discipline Board on a monthly basis. Over the last 7-8 months, no detainee in PMT Craiova had been sanctioned by confinement.

There had been a single recorded case when a detainee complained that he had been beaten by a non-commissioned officer. The management sanctioned the guard, transferred him to another duty and notified the Prosecutor’s Office, who did not decide on the case yet.

As for the staff, the management informed that all 112 positions were filled. The social-educational department was however understaffed and would have benefited from supplementary positions. Medical care was provided by 3 doctors, a dentist and 5 nurses, while one nurse position was vacant.

Detainees on pre-trial detention and those serving final sentences had different uniforms. There had been an attempt at allowing those on pre-trial detention to wear their own clothes, abandoned because they did not have what to wear.

Most visits were in the common system (detainees and visitors are separated by a wide horizontal plank); table visits (detainees and visitors sit together at a normal table) were granted as a reward for good behavior. In May 2004, about 50 detainees were allowed table visits.

Room representatives were elected by their mates and confirmed by the management; they were entitled to an extra parcel and visit every month. APADOR-CH reiterates that no detainee, whether he is elected or appointed, should enjoy a superior position to other detainees. There is a risk that the room representative uses others for personal purposes. Moreover, he benefits from privileges (extra visits/parcels/possibly phone calls, exemption from chores, etc) that may generate envy and frustration. In many cases, the room representative is seen as “the management’s yes-man”, which makes room mates reticent towards him. APADOR-CH asks once again that the system of electing/appointing room representatives is abandoned.         

In order to comply with Emergency Ordinance no. 56/2003, the penitentiary had installed a mail box near the canteen, where detainees have access during meals (7-8, 12-14, 17.30-19). An employee of the Romanian Postal Service emptied the box twice a week. Also, since the beginning of 2004, 500 envelopes, 60 pens, 1000 paper sheets were distributed to detainees, and 200 photocopies were produced, all for free.

A single pay phone was installed in one of the sections. The prison management had asked Romtelecom to install a second pay phone, but the request was denied as non-profitable. Even the existing pay-phone was non-profitable from the standpoint of Romtelecom. Detainees were allowed to make one 5 minute call per week. A social phone card was available for detainees in difficult financial situations.

The penitentiary used to have its own radio-station, but the mixer broke down in March 2003 and was never repaired. Although there had been promises from the DGP to remedy the situation, no help had been granted so far.

In terms of investments, the tender for repair works at the administrative unit was on-going at the moment of the visit. A waiting room for visitors and a new exercise yard were also going to be built. The two units hosting dorms had been repaired in 2000, when the lavatories in the rooms were provided with sinks, but no showers. Due to certain planning deficiencies, there were no drains on the floor either, so detainees were unable to wash properly at the sink (no way to drain water from the floor). This had an obvious negative impact on the detainees’ hygiene. To fix things, new investments were needed, which was impossible since the latest ones were so recent. APADOR-CH asks the DGP to find technical and financial solutions for this problem as soon as possible.

The penitentiary had had its own methane based heating system since 2003, so detainees were provided with hot water twice a week and there were no heating problems during winter.

The Penitentiary cooperated with three NGOs:

- GRADO organized training courses for staff and was running activities for the detainees: courses for chefs, housepainters and barbers, counseling and an alternative education program for juveniles featuring four sections (visual arts, drama therapy, percussion and journalism);

- “Cuvântul care zideşte” (“The Word that Builds”), an organization of the Oltenia Orthodox Bishopric, organized an elementary school course funded by PHARE, with the support of UNICEF and World Vision. Visiting teachers teach four hours per day as part of the program. It also ran a tailoring course using sewing machines donated by UNICEF, and a daily group/individual counseling program;

- CRED (a NGO from Bucureşti) ran a vocational counseling program for juveniles, as well as a six-month cycle of behavior therapy through dance, in one and a half hour sessions twice a week.

NOTE:    Information on the activities of NGOs inside Craiova Juveniles and Youth Penitentiary is that provided by the prison management. After the release of the present report, APADOR-CH was contacted by Mrs. Camelia Tancau, President of CRED, who underlined that the training courses for the staff, the courses for chefs, housepainters and barbers (for detainees), as well as the counseling activities were run by CRED and not by GRADO, as mentioned in the report.

The prison management also received TV sets for the detention rooms and computers for the IT center from UNICEF; at the moment of the visit, the penitentiary had applied for another 15 TV sets (10 rooms had no TV set) and 6 computers to UNICEF.

During their 1999 visit, the representatives of APADOR-CH pointed out to the problem of air pollution caused by the heating plant across the road. Unfortunately, the matter was still not solved, although it caused health problems for both detainees and staff.

2. The discussion with the prison management

Primary School no. 40 - Craiova and the Arts and Crafts School no. 21 – Craiova functioned as part of the PMT Craiova, with a total of 250-260 students.

On the day of the visit, the school was organizing special activities for the 1^st of June (Children’s Day): an art contest (25-30 participants) and a pavement drawing contest (24-26 participants). The winners received diplomas and sweets.

The schools ran two classes of intensive elementary teaching, 10 secondary school classes and 16 classes of first year arts and crafts professional training. Besides, 45 other persons were enrolled on the reading and writing courses organized by “Cuvântul care zideşte”.

A 50% attendance was needed for promotion. If detainees were temporarily transferred to other penitentiaries, the classes they attended there were not taken into consideration for promotion. APADOR-CH believed that that period, too, should have been taken into consideration if the other penitentiary confirmed that the detainee attended school.

The Arts and Crafts School had classes for carpenters, welders, electricians, locksmiths, masons, turners, car mechanics and farmers. The students were selected for the various classes following psychological IQ testing and according to their own options. The professions were chosen based on the existing equipment and trainers. The workshops were extremely poorly equipped (in the turners’ workshop, for instance, only two lathes were functioning). At the beginning of the year, the school management had been informed by the DGP that they were going to get 100 000 Euro for equipment, but the money never arrived and nobody knew when they were due. Half of the 100 000 Euro were going to be used as investment in the school workshops. A carpentry workshop had been equipped thanks to funds offered by the Canadian Embassy.

APADOR-CH underlines how important professional training was for detainees following release. The better their training in sought for professions, the higher their chances to find work and lower the risk of repeated offences. APADOR-CH asks the DGP to give full support to the diversification of professions according to the requirements of the labor market and the endowment of workshops with modern equipment.

Besides the Arts and Crafts classes, detainees about to be released were also invited to attend courses organized by GRADO and CRED, on condition they started at least six months before release.

The IT course had 42 attendants – the second series so far. The course lasted for 4 months, two sessions per week.

The school worked in two shifts: in the morning, between 8 and 12.40, four secondary school classes, four Arts and Craft classes and one primary school class; in the afternoon, between 13.30 and 17.40, the remaining 12 Arts and Crafts classes and the second primary school class.

Teaching and professional training involved 24 staff: 14 teachers (4 in Romanian language, 2 in Math, 3 in Physics and Chemistry, 3 in Physical Education, 1 in Biology, 1 in History and Geography and 10 engineers), 2 primary school teachers and 16 professional trainers. Most of the staff were replacements (13 teachers and 14 trainers).

The school principal mentioned that some of the worst problems were: the impossibility to ensure full norms for the teachers because of the low number of detainees, lack of equipment in workshops and high degree of illiteracy.

3. Discussions with members of the social and educational department

The social and educational department had 7 officers (4 legal experts, 1 sociologist, 1 social worker and 1 primary class teacher), 9 social reinsertion instructors (formerly known as educators), a psychologist, 1 priest, 1 reviewer and 1 non-commissioned officer.

From the discussion with the psychologist it resulted that at least one more psychologist would have been needed, due to the critical age and behavior troubles of detainees. During quarantine, detainees were submitted to standard psychological tests for the preliminary evaluation of IQ, personality and more serious behavior troubles. Following testing, about 10-12 % of detainees showed signs of intellectual retardation. Every month the DGP was informed of all serious cases of social and behavior disturbance. The psychologist saw an average of 3-4 detainees per day.

The penitentiary had initiated a database so that any member of the staff was able to access, at any time, the information gathered by the social and educational department on each detainee.

The social worker was the person trying to re-establish connections with the families of detainees who never received any visits. Since the beginning of 2004, the social worker had sent three letters but had received no answers. APADOR-CH believes that not only the social worker, but other members of the penitentiary staff should also get involved in this activity. A very close cooperation with the Social Reinsertion and Observation (Probation) Service (SRSS) is also necessary so that juveniles and young offenders are reintegrated with their families.

Social and educational programs run by the penitentiary focused, among other things, on road safety education, sanitary education, family, occupational therapy (drawing, fretwork, molding), besides the sports program.

Together with the Probation Service in Dolj, the penitentiary ran a program entitled “Choosing a Trade”, which implied self-knowledge, knowledge of others and understanding the steps to be taken in order to obtain a job. The program addressed detainees who had 3-4 more months until release. Two probation counselors came to the penitentiary for two hours every Wednesday. The social worker also took part in the sessions, which included 12 detainees for a 3 months period. The first group had completed the program and a second group was going through it at the time.

A program entitled “The Scale” was designed to assess the consequences of crimes made by detainees, in groups of 8-15. A civic education program was run in cooperation with a voluntary consultant from outside the penitentiary.

A program entitled “Final” addressed detainees who were about to be released and lasted for a week. Every Thursday, detainees about to be released were moved into a special room, where they spent their last week in prison. The program offered support in the efforts to accept the label of former convict and to find a job (information on where and how to find relevant institutions) and was run with the help of the Dolj Probation Service.

Joint activities with students in Craiova were organized in cooperation with the National Agency for Youth. In 2003, the penitentiary organized, on its own, visits to a high-school in Craiova and a visit of students from the local community to the prison. The activity involved 15 detainees selected according to the following criteria: their being enrolled on high-school classes, the nature of their crimes, their behavior while in prison and their wish. Every year trips were organized: in 2003, 25 juveniles visited 6 monasteries in the area during a trip in September.

About 50 detainees split in 4 groups took part in programs organized by CRED. The alternative education program run by GRADO involved other 50 juveniles.

The staff of the social and educational department considered that the most serious problem they confronted was the lack of post-penal assistance after release. The activity of the Probation Services (SRSS) was not considered satisfactory. For that reason, re-education activities conducted in prison brought no results after release, when assistance was essential.

4. The visit to the penitentiary

The kitchen area

On the day of the visit, the juveniles and young detainees had tea, marmalade, omelet and pork scraps for breakfast; potato and egg soup, rice and pork with pickles for lunch; cabbage and pork scraps, pasta and cheese for dinner.

The amount of meat taken from the supply room was of 25.140 kilograms of meat, plus 8.6 kilos of bacon and 8.490 kilos of pork trimmings.

The meat was not mixed with the rest of the food, but prepared separately, so that every detainee received a piece. The respective pieces were rather small, including bits of bone and fat.

The medical cabinets

The penitentiary had its own dental practice offering up to 10 consultations every day. For dental surgery, detainees were taken to the maxilo-facial surgery section of the civilian hospital. The dentist practice was endowed with a minimum of materials. Another problem was the lack of a position for a dental nurse.

General practitioners saw about 50-60 patients a day (members of staff, juveniles and young detainees). APADOR-CH insists that penitentiary doctors should not have members of the staff under care, with the exception of emergencies. APADOR-CH has constantly pointed out to the fact that – despite verbal assurances – penitentiary doctors continue to allocate a number of hours every day for the prison staff.

The main health problems among detainees were cold viruses and behavior troubles. The penitentiary did not employ a psychiatrist, so that more serious cases of mental conditions were transferred to the Craiova Hospital or to the Jilava Penitentiary Hospital. Detainees were allowed to receive medication from home, but only based on a prescription from the prison doctor.

When taken to the civilian hospital in the city, juveniles were handcuffed and accompanied by two non-commissioned officers. APADOR-CH considers this situation to be unacceptable and reminds that it was severely criticized by the Committee for the Prevention of Torture. The measure of handcuffing sick detainees is unjustified (most of the times, detainees requiring admittance in a civilian hospital are in a rather serious state), and unnecessary because they are permanently guarded by two non-commissioned officers.

The doctor who talked to the representatives of APADOR-CH said that any sign of violence discovered during the initial medical examination was mentioned in the detainee’s medical record.

The distribution of condoms remained a taboo for the penitentiary system. However, a first step was made: detainees received condoms upon release from PMT Craiova as part of a PHARE funded program run by the DGP. APADOR-CH hopes that the system will eventually open and face the prison realities: some of the detainees have consensual sex and distributing condoms is a way of protecting them of sexually transmitted disease. Protecting the life and health of persons in custody is more important than the fears of the staff that by distributing condoms they would encourage same-sex relations.

The infirmary ward (Section VII)

Room 43 – the infirmary – hosted two detainees. N.F. (18) had a psychiatric condition involving a personality disorder and had been in the infirmary for about 2 months. P.C. (22) was being kept under medical observation while he recovered from pneumonia.

During the day, detainees cleaned their rooms, went out for exercise and watched TV (from 7.30 to 22.00, from a choice of 27 channels). The room had a sink running hot water every day. The lavatory with two toilet cabins, a sink and a shower was on the corridor, where detainees had free access. They received disposable razors, shaving cream, toothpaste, soap, toilet paper and shoe polish every month. However, N.F. had last received a razor in February.

Detainees said they received newspapers two or three times a week (Southern Gazette – the Oltenia edition). The newspaper found in the room was dated May 31^st, 2004. Later, the representatives of the Association had the impression that newspapers had been distributed around only because of their visit. Various titles of papers were found in the rooms and detainees also mentioned a diversity of publications, most of them central newspapers. But it was hard to believe that the penitentiary had money to subscribe to as many titles as that. During their visits to other penitentiaries, the representatives of APADOR-CH noted that subscriptions were bought for two, mostly three papers, of which a local one. Besides, when the representatives of the Association reached Section III at 16.00, newspapers were just being distributed to every room. In general, a single set of newspaper is brought to a section in the morning and, until afternoon, the papers circulate from one room to the other.

The school

Class IX-A were having a geometry course. Normally, the class had 6 students, one of which had chosen the optional attendance mode. Due to 1^st of June activities, only two students were present.

G.I.C. (20) had enrolled on the journalism course organized by GRADO and had already been to a first session and learned how to use a video camera. He had found out about the program from another mate. He had been rewarded for good behavior with an open visit. The visit lasted for half an hour to an hour and the detainee had to wear a gown over the prison uniform.

Detention area

Class VIII-A (7 young detainees) was part of the group therapy and preparation for release program organized by “Cuvântul care zideşte”. The group had been formed a month earlier and met a social worker from the organization three times a week. Three of the young detainees had been attending the IT course for 3 months. Asked about what they learned there, they were unable to provide any clear answers. Detainees played football three afternoons per week. They were entitled to 4 phone-calls a month. They applied for the calls on Thursdays and placed the calls on Saturdays. A non-commissioned officer listened to all phone conversations. Detainees complained about the poor quality of food. When asked about disciplinary sanctions, there was only one young man, L.C. (22) who said he had been punished for breaking a window by a suspension of the right to visitation and parcel. The incident had taken place about one year and a half earlier.

Section IV (for detainees undertaking classes) included 4 rooms for young detainees and one for juveniles. Room 13 accommodated 13 detainees in 15 beds. The room measured about 25 m², which meant about 2 m² per person, less than half the CPT standards. The youths here were qualifying as smiths / mechanics and welders at the Arts and Crafts School. Some of them had also enlisted to hairdressing classes. They were taken out for exercise for one hour on weekdays and one and a half during the weekend. They had hot running water in the room every day and took a bath on Saturdays, in the eight shower cabins available. They were allowed to watch TV every day until 23.30. The room representative was exempted from chores. One of the youths in room 23, who had no money, used the social phone card to call home. Another one was employed in the workshop, putting together beds, and had earned about 200 000 lei, which he used to buy goods available in the penitentiary.

Section IV also included the tailoring workshop, equipped with 5 new sewing machines. At the moment of the visit, the workshop was closed and no activities were going on.

Room 37, Section VI, accommodated 12 juveniles (serving final sentences) in 12 beds. The daily exercise program lasted for 1-2 hours. They had been out to the club the day before. Besides school, two of them took part in IT classes.

One of the rooms in the section hosted the painting course, for which ten detainees had opted. At the moment of the visit, the teacher worked with only two detainees who were being taught how to gold surfaces. They said they painted every day and were allowed to take the painting materials in their rooms and continue their work. The teacher said that he planned to divide the course into three sections: paining, graphics and molding. Materials were available because detainees had sold their works in Scotland, with the support of World Vision, and used to money to buy what they needed.

Room 16, Section III, accommodated 10 persons in 12 beds. V.L. had enlisted for the reading and writing courses offered by “Cuvântul care zideşte” because he wanted to “erase” some of the sanction reports he had received at the Rahova Penitentiary (during the 4 months at PMT Craiova, he had managed to “erase” 3 of the 11 reports in his file).

Room 14 (quarantine, juveniles) accommodated 11 persons in 12 beds. R.R. and C.I. had been transferred from the Deva Penitentiary where their heads were shaved during quarantine - against their wish (they still had very short hair). APADOR-CH reminds that shaving one’s hair by force was considered by the European Court for Human Rights as a degrading treatment, in violation of Article 3 of the European Convention. T.C. complained that he was brought from Cluj and had not been able to inform his parents where he was. D.O. had developed a rash for about 4 days and said that the doctor had not told him when to come back for a check-up. N.A.N., whom the representatives of the Association had also met in the consultation room, had developed rashes about a month earlier (during police custody), had received treatment, but his state had not improved. The juveniles, who received their food in the room, complained that they had no meat that day. When questioned by the governor, the non-commissioned officers in the section were unable to provide a reasonable explanation for the lack of meat in the menu.

5. Conclusions

APADOR-CH appreciates the efforts made by the staff to provide education and training, as well as spare time activities for the juveniles and young detainees. The result of this preoccupation is a good atmosphere and the absence of discipline problems (most detainees questioned said they had never been sanctioned).

However, APADOR-CH deems that the penitentiary should give special consideration to the following problems:

- To ensure the confidentiality of phone conversations. The fact that the non-commissioned officer who accompanies the detainee to the phone hears – albeit involuntarily - the conversation is in breach of the latter’s right to privacy, of domestic legislation and of Article 8 of the European Convention on Human Rights, ratified by Romania;

- To ensure the confidentiality of information regarding detainees contained in the database of the social-educational department. The initiative of creating such a database is commendable, as long as it is operational and contributes to a better understanding of detainees’ problems. However, free access to the database may infringe upon their right to privacy. That is why APADOR-CH suggests that access to the database should be limited to that information which may help the staff in other departments in their professional relation with detainees. Those members of the staff who have access to the database must preserve the confidentiality of personal data;

- To diversify educational activities for young detainees. While juveniles are involved in both internal programs and programs run by the various NGOs, young detainees take part in much fewer activities;

- To ensure diversified food for the juveniles, taking into account their specific needs for growth and physical development;

- To adjust professional training to the requirements of the labor market, so that trades learnt by juveniles and young detainees in prison offer them a real chance to find a job after release. Since the courses offered by the Arts and Crafts School depend on the endowment – very poor anyway – of the workshops and plans to modernize them are not feasible for the moment, APADOR-CH suggests that the IT course be turned into an officially acknowledged professional training course, certified by the Ministry of Education;

- To get more involved in the efforts to reestablish connections between detainees who are not contacted by anyone and their families. Since the penitentiary host about 150 such detainees, the 3 attempts to contact families made over 5 months are completely meaningless. It is also essential that the SRSS has a real involvement in the process.

At the same time, APADOR-CH asks the DGP:

- To increase the number of positions for psychologists by at least one. A single psychologist for about 300 juveniles and young detainees who require special attention from this point of view is obviously insufficient;

- To increase the number of medical positions by one dental nurse;

- To grant financial support for the endowment of the secondary school and the Arts and Crafts School in the penitentiary;

- To help the penitentiary remedy the problem of the radio transmitter;

- To grant financial support so that the penitentiary remedies the absence of a drainage system on the floors of detention rooms. Such a deficiency impedes the personal hygiene of detainees; therefore, the explanation that investments in the renovation of detention rooms were too recent is unacceptable;

- To close a deal with Romtelecom in order to ensure the right of detainees to phone calls. Given the fact that the existing pay phone is not profitable, there is a risk that the line is closed. Moreover, the request for a second pay phone was denied on grounds of profitability. The deal with Romtelecom might also include phone booths, to ensure the confidentiality of conversations;

- To lobby decision makers in order to solve the problem of air pollution caused by the heating plant. The same request was made by the representatives of APADOR-CH following their previous visit to PMT Craiova. Although five years have gone by, no solution has been found and the health of both detainees and staff is still at risk.

 

Diana Călinescu