Yanukovych in Volyn colonies – persona non grata?

To carry out a planned inspection of UVP-42 (Correctional Institution No. 42), members of the regional supervisory commission sent a letter No. 7.6-257.1 signed by the First Deputy of the Volyn Regional State Administration and the Head of the Volyn Regional Supervisory Commission, V. Zaremba. The visit was planned for 14 August and provided for the commission members to familiarise themselves with the conditions of detention of convicts, in particular, with living conditions, quality of food, working conditions, material-domestic, and medical-sanitary support for convicts. A reception for convicts was also planned. This activity is provided for by regulations and complied with current legislation. The person responsible for conducting the event was appointed as a member of the regional supervisory commission, H. O. Kornievskyi.
In response to this letter, a fax message arrived from the department’s administration addressed to the head of the supervisory commission, V. M. Zaremba, stating that the administration requests to postpone the planned inspection until the third decade of September – claiming that preparations for the Independence Day anniversary are currently underway.
The administration’s letter also contained a peculiar request – “please do not involve persons previously convicted in visiting penal institutions.”
According to Article 25 of the Criminal Executive Code, supervisory commissions must exercise public oversight of the activities of the penal system. Therefore, they are free to choose the time for their activities. Of course, the leadership of institutions can request a change in the time of the visit if there are any emergency circumstances. However, as follows from the administration’s argumentation, preparation for Independence Day in UVP-42 is an emergency circumstance.
The wish regarding “previously convicted persons” deserves separate attention. Is it lawful? If it concerns a specific person for whom there is irrefutable evidence of their criminal and dangerous actions, even if they were not previously convicted, a restriction on visits may be imposed. However, here we are talking about a member of the supervisory commission and about a person whose conviction has been expunged in the manner prescribed by law. Thus, such a demand by the penal administration is ordinary arbitrariness, an obstruction of the activity of a body that is supposed to verify the observance of human rights in penal institutions. And such actions by one of the heads of the administration, I. Stefanovskyi, have been committed for several years. This very respectable gentleman can do whatever he wants with members of the supervisory commission (the inspecting body!): arbitrarily confiscate the ID of a member of the supervisory commission, forbid visits whenever he feels like it.
Such brutal violations are facilitated by the department’s leadership, which, upon receiving evidence of unlawful activity, sees nothing and considers such actions “lawful.” If the fact of a person’s conviction is in itself a reason for refusal to visit a colony, then, for example, Mr. Yanukovych has no chance of getting into the colonies of Volyn.
With such bans and such “guardians” of the law, our country hopes to get into the European community.