The Council of Europe within the joint project with the EU continues its support to Ukraine in the process of reforming the penitentiary system.

At the request of the Minister of Justice of Ukraine, the Council of Europe provided, on 4 September 2020, expert opinion on the Ukrainian draft Law “On the establishment of the dual system of the regular penitentiary inspections”.

The draft law was designed to establish and operate a system of regular internal (administrative) and external penitentiary inspections of pre-trial detention facilities and penitentiary institutions and to ensure compliance of their activities with the requirements of the Constitution of Ukraine, international and national legislation, observance of legal rights and interests of convicted persons and those held in pre-trial detention, as well as the staff of penitentiary and pre-trial detention facilities.

The opinion examines the compatibility of the provisions of the Draft Law with the Council of Europe and other international standards and provides recommendations in this regard. It will contribute to the Verkhovna Rada’s examination with a view of the adoption of the Law.

This activity was organised within the EU and Council of Europe Joint Project "Support to Prison Reform in Ukraine - SPERU", which is designed to promote human rights compliant management of prisons, including better alignment of prison healthcare provisions with European standards.