Ivano-Frankivsk Punishment Execution Institution (No. 12)

State Institution “Ivano-Frankivsk Punishment Execution Institution (No. 12)” is one of the oldest penal institutions in the Subcarpathian region. It functions as a pre-trial detention centre, providing for the custody of individuals held under arrest, as well as specific categories of convicted persons in accordance with the requirements of Ukrainian legislation.

The history of the institution is inextricably linked to the history of the city of Ivano-Frankivsk, which was known as Stanislav until 1962. At the beginning of the twentieth century, the Austro-Hungarian authorities decided to construct a new judicial and prison complex. In 1906, a plot of land was purchased on Bilinskyi Street (now Konovalets Street) for the construction of a district court and prison.

In May 1911, a complex of buildings was put into operation, which included the courthouse, the prison block, an isolation block, utility facilities, and residential buildings for staff. The central structure was a four-storey prison building connected to the court facilities by a special underground passage for escorting prisoners to court hearings.

At the start of its operation, the Stanislav prison was one of the most modern in Galicia. It featured central heating, electric lighting, hospital wards, a chapel, a library, a classroom for juveniles, and production workshops. According to archival data, in 1923, the prison was designed to hold 406 people and was under the jurisdiction of the Polish state.

Throughout the first half of the twentieth century, the institution was under the authority of various state entities: Austria-Hungary, the Republic of Poland, the Soviet Union, and Nazi Germany. Despite the changing political regimes, the complex continued to be used for its primary purpose as a place of pre-trial detention and the serving of sentences.

Following the end of the Second World War, the institution underwent restoration and modernisation. Production workshops were established, the utility infrastructure was expanded, and conditions for the detention of prisoners were improved. In subsequent decades, the institution functioned as a prison for holding those sentenced to imprisonment and those recognised as particularly dangerous recidivists.

During the 1970s and 1980s, production developed actively, with the introduction of new types of products and the construction of staff housing, dormitories, and social infrastructure facilities. Directors Volodymyr Danyliuk, Vasyl Ivanchuk, and Petro Yaremkiv played a significant role in the development of the institution, overseeing the modernisation of its production and communal base.

In connection with the reform of Ukraine’s criminal-executive system and the creation of the State Department of Ukraine for the Execution of Criminal Punishments, the institution VI-304/19 was renamed the Ivano-Frankivsk Pre-trial Detention Centre by order No. 165 on 29 November 1999.

At the beginning of the twenty-first century, the institution underwent a large-scale reconstruction of its security zones, medical unit, cell blocks, and communal service facilities. Rooms for long-term visits were created, the medical unit was modernised, and the auxiliary farm was developed, which allowed for the partial provision of the inmates’ own agricultural produce.

In 2002, the institution won a grant programme from the International Renaissance Foundation aimed at working with juvenile prisoners. As part of the project, a modern educational base was created, multimedia equipment was purchased, and a cable television system was deployed. Since 2006, the institution has operated evening classes for juvenile prisoners and convicts.

Today, State Institution “Ivano-Frankivsk Punishment Execution Institution (No. 12)” serves as a pre-trial detention centre and provides for the custody of those under arrest as well as certain categories of convicts. Significant attention is paid to respecting human rights, ensuring proper living conditions, medical care, education, social-educational work, and the resocialisation of those held in the facility.

The institution actively collaborates with representatives of civil society, local self-government bodies, religious organisations, and educational institutions, which contributes to increasing the openness of the penal system and the implementation of modern approaches to the treatment of prisoners.

The current head of the institution is Volodymyr Bohdanovych ATAMANIUK.

Contact Information

State Institution “Ivano-Frankivsk Punishment Execution Institution (No. 12)”

76018, Ivano-Frankivsk region, Ivano-Frankivsk, Konovalets St., 70

Telephone: (0342) 55-93-02

Head of the institution: Volodymyr Bohdanovych ATAMANIUK.