THE PENITENTIARY SYSTEM OF UKRAINE IN 2018. A Statistical Review (Updated)

(extract from the report ‘Observance of Prisoners’ Rights in Ukraine in 2018’)

In the places of deprivation of liberty of the criminal executive system of Ukraine controlled by the Ukrainian government – that is, excluding institutions in Crimea and the occupied parts of Donetsk and Luhansk regions – according to data provided to ‘Donetsk Memorial’ by the Administration of the State Criminal Executive Service of Ukraine, as of 1 January 2019, 55,078 persons were being held (SCES Letter No. 1/4-25-19/18-Pi dated 11 February 2019; here and hereinafter, figures in parentheses indicate the status as of 1 January 2018 – 57,100 persons). Over the year, the number of persons in places of deprivation of liberty decreased by 2,022 (3,299), or by –3.54% (–5.46%).

The dynamics of the number of persons in the institutions of the criminal executive system over the past seven years are presented in Table 1 below.

Table 1

* estimated data including institutions in the occupied territory of Donbas.

The prisoner rate per 100,000 of the population for Ukraine is 131 (135). This is calculated based on the population of Ukraine, which according to the State Statistics Service of Ukraine stood at approximately 42,177 thousand citizens as of 1 December 2018 – excluding Crimea.

As of 1 January 2019, 18,030 persons were held in custody in 12 active pre-trial detention centres and 17 correctional institutions with the function of a pre-trial detention centre (former pre-trial detention centres – Author’s note) (compared to 17,587 a year ago), including 1,032 women (958 women a year ago). The SCES of Ukraine did not report the number of juveniles in pre-trial detention centres this year, whereas their number stood at 133 a year ago. Thus, over the year, the total number of persons held in custody increased by 443 (having increased by 1,219 in the previous year), or by +2.52% (+7.45%).

In 2018, 8,788 persons did not end up in correctional institutions from pre-trial detention centres and were released from them (compared to 2,745 in the previous year).

Among the main reasons for release from pre-trial detention centres during 2018 were: a change of preventive measure to a more lenient one – 4,571 persons (compared to 1,251 a year ago); sentencing to imprisonment but for a relatively short term – as a rule, a term that the detained person had already served while in pre-trial detention – 511 persons (572); the imposition of non-custodial sentences – 1,005 persons (compared to 381 a year ago and 1,347 two years ago); and due to the dismissal of cases by courts or acquittals – 41 persons (compared to 11 a year ago).

Statistical data regarding the reasons for release from pre-trial detention centres in recent years are presented in Table 2.

Table 2

The number of convicted persons in 2018 decreased from 39,513 to 37,048, i.e. by 2,465 persons (by 4,518 a year ago), or by –6.2% (–10.3%).

Of these, 126 are serving sentences in juvenile correctional facilities (compared to 146 a year ago and 304 two years ago), with 65 of them under the age of 18 (compared to 86 a year ago and 174 two years ago).

The number of convicted women serving sentences in criminal executive institutions is 1,711 (compared to 1,896 a year ago).

The number of life-sentenced prisoners in state-controlled institutions as of 1 January 2019 was 1,541 (compared to 1,572 a year ago and 1,579 two years ago), including 23 women. During the year, the number of life-sentenced prisoners decreased by 31. In response to a special inquiry regarding the reasons for the decline in the number of lifers, the Administration of the SCES of Ukraine reported in a letter No. 1/4-26-19/17-Pi dated 11 February 2019 that 33 life-sentenced prisoners died in 2017 and 27 in 2018.

The number of persons sentenced to life imprisonment in 2017 was 21, and in 2018 – also 21. A superficial examination of the provided data cannot explain how in 2017, with 21 newly sentenced lifers and 33 deaths (a balance of –12), the total number of lifers decreased by 7 over the year, whereas in 2018, with 21 newly sentenced lifers and 27 deaths (a balance of –6), the total number of lifers decreased by 31. The Head of the Department for Records, Organisational-Analytical and Administrative-Support Provision of the SCES of Ukraine, O. Yu. Vielkov, notes that ‘an important reason is the setting aside of court verdicts and remitting them for new trials’, as well as ‘aligning court verdicts with the requirements of current legislation in connection with the introduction of amendments to certain legislative acts of Ukraine on ensuring the execution of criminal sentences and the realisation of the rights of convicts under Article 68 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine. The collection and synthesis of such data is not conducted by the SCES Administration’. If the aforementioned factors can still explain the discrepancy in 2017 between the balance of –12 persons and the actual decrease of 7, then where did another 25 life-sentenced prisoners go in 2018, representing the difference between the balance of –6 and the actual decrease of 31?

It is obvious that there has been extraordinary confusion regarding statistical data at the Ministry of Justice in recent years. This is confirmed by the calculation of the prisoner balance in 2018. According to the SCES of Ukraine’s data, during 2018, 15,557 persons were admitted to correctional institutions, while 15,343 were released. This means the prison population should have increased by 214 over the year. Meanwhile, this number decreased by 2,022.

There are also issues with the number of active institutions. The statistical information published on the SCES of Ukraine website as of 1 January 2019 indicates the number of convicts who are supposedly held in 7 minimum-security institutions, whereas in reality they are held in 5. The same applies to medium-security institutions for repeat offenders – 27 institutions are marked as active on the website, while there are only 26; 32 medium-security institutions are listed as active, though in reality there are only 29; and out of 21 correctional centres, only 15 are active in reality.

Therefore, the statistical data provided by the SCES of Ukraine must be used with extreme caution due to considerable uncertainty regarding its accuracy.

In 2018, 5,552 persons were released on parole (compared to 6,314 a year ago and 9,244 two years ago) out of a total of 14,670 who formally qualified for parole. This constitutes 37.8% of those who formally qualified for parole (compared to 38.22% a year ago, 41.15% two years ago, 47.2% three years ago, and 53.5% four years ago).

Number of persons serving sentences for the following offences as of 1 January 2019 (figures in parentheses indicate the status as of 1 January 2018):

number of persons convicted of intentional homicide – 6,967 (7,366);

including the number of persons who committed murder under aggravating circumstances – 2,939 (3,466);

 number of persons convicted of inflicting grievous bodily harm – 2,939 (3,062);

 number of persons convicted of robbery, larceny, and extortion – 7,817 (8,624);

 number of persons convicted of rape – 693 (761);

 number of persons convicted of hostage-taking – 5 (0);

 number of persons convicted of crimes in the sphere of illicit trafficking of narcotic drugs, psychotropic substances, their analogues, or precursors, and other crimes against public health – 4,360 (4,403);

number of persons sentenced to a term of over 10 years – 5,514 (5,749),

The number of able-bodied persons in correctional institutions as of 1 January 2019 was 22,904 (24,483 a year ago and 28,556 two years ago), or 61.8% of all convicted persons; of these, 8,113 persons were provided with work (compared to 9,588 a year ago). This constitutes 35.4% of the able-bodied population (39.16% as of 1 January 2018 and 47.2% as of 1 January 2017) and 21.9% of the total number of convicts (compared to 24.3% a year ago). The average monthly salary of employed convicts was UAH 1,865 (compared to UAH 1,428.2 a year ago).

According to data from the Probation Centre, as of 1 January 2019, 56,525 persons sentenced to non-custodial penalties were registered with the authorised probation bodies (compared to 57,295 a year ago), including 49,967 persons released from serving their sentences on probation.

One indicator of the complexity of issues in the medical sphere and the provision of healthcare services can be considered the rate of morbidity, mortality, and the number of suicides in the agency’s institutions.

During 2018, 484 persons died in correctional institutions (compared to 568), of whom 138 died in pre-trial detention centres (compared to 164). The number of suicide cases across all places of deprivation of liberty in 2018 was 47 (compared to 46), with 14 occurring in pre-trial detention centres (compared to 13).

The number of prisoners suffering from tuberculosis at the end of 2018 was 1,141 (compared to 1,356), including 223 in pre-trial detention centres (compared to 273 a year ago). Per 1,000 prisoners, the number of patients decreased over 2018 from 23.75 to 20.72.

The number of HIV-infected persons in 2018 rose from 3,830 to 3,859, with 1,017 held in pre-trial detention centres (compared to 975), and the rate per 1,000 prisoners rose from 67.08 to 70.06.

The dynamics of these indicators over the past eight years are shown in Table 4.

Table 4

Morbidity and mortality in the institutions of the Department in 2003 and 2011–2018

As of 1 January 2018, 1,220 persons with disabilities were held in correctional institutions (compared to 1,153 a year ago).

In 2018, 137 complaints concerning convicts sentenced to deprivation of liberty were received and registered by the Ministry of Justice of Ukraine (compared to 432 complaints in the previous year). Deputy Minister of Justice D. Chernyshov noted in the response that it is impossible to provide information regarding satisfied complaints or those recognized as well-founded, because the corresponding search parameters are missing from the electronic document management system of the Ministry of Justice. Furthermore, the Ministry of Justice is not the holder of information regarding the number of satisfied or well-founded complaints from convicts.

During 2018, no decisions on the liquidation or reorganisation (closure) of correctional institutions of the State Criminal Executive Service were adopted by the Ministry of Justice.

One indication of the importance of the fight against corruption to the leadership of the agency is the fact that at the beginning of 2018, there was a relevant section on the agency's website where information was supposed to be posted on the status of work regarding compliance by the staff of the State Criminal Executive Service of Ukraine with the requirements of anti-corruption legislation. However, a year ago, the last material posted on the website was dated mid-2015. Thus, any information about anti-corruption measures in the agency for 2016–17 was completely absent from the website (http://www.kvs.gov.ua/peniten/control/main/uk/publish/category/627427). Currently, this section contains only the telephone hotline number of the Sector for the Prevention and Detection of Corruption of the SCES Administration of Ukraine and the corresponding email address – [email protected]. Were there any measures in this area, information about them would undoubtedly have appeared on the website.

Detained persons are also held under several other agencies. Under the management bodies of the Military Law Enforcement Service, there are 12 military guardhouses for holding remanded, administratively arrested, and detained military personnel, and 2 guardhouses for holding administratively arrested and detained military personnel.

According to the Ministry of Defence of Ukraine, at the beginning of 2018, 12 military personnel were serving sentences in the disciplinary battalion. During the year, 36 convicted persons were admitted to the disciplinary battalion to serve sentences, and 22 persons were released from the disciplinary battalion, so at the end of the year, 26 remained there.

At the beginning of the year, 49 persons were in custody in military guardhouses; during the year, 121 persons were placed in them, and 118 left. At the end of the year, 52 military personnel were in the guardhouses (Letter of the Ministry of Defence of Ukraine No. 306/3/345 dated 22 January 2019).

In the structure of territorial bodies of the National Police, there are 150 temporary holding facilities (ITTs) with a total capacity limit of 3,249 places. As of 1 January 2019, 22 persons were held in them. In total, 74,975 persons were held in ITTs during 2018.

During 2018, 16 arrested and remanded persons died in ITTs, of whom 10 died as a result of suicide and 6 from natural causes.

In 2018, 40 police employees died, including 29 police officers and 2 civilian employees in circumstances unrelated to the performance of their official duties, and 9 police officers in circumstances related to the performance of their official duties.

The SBU operates one temporary holding facility in Kyiv for holding persons suspected of preparing or conducting intelligence, subversive, or terrorist activities and committing other crimes, the investigation of which falls under the competence of the SBU. The capacity of the facility is 48 persons. As of 1 January 2019, 17 persons were held in it (compared to 18 in the previous year), and in total, during 2018, 160 persons were held there (134) (SBU Letter No. 23/84 dated 15 January 2019).

Children who have committed crimes under the age of 14 are sent to schools and vocational schools of social rehabilitation. These institutions are subordinated to the Ministry of Education and Science of Ukraine. According to data from this Ministry (Letter No. 2.1-231 dated 21 January 2019), there are 18 children in such institutions (compared to 21 children a year ago), including:

In the Komyshuvakha Social Rehabilitation School for Boys in the Zaporizhzhia region (designed for 160 children) – 9 persons (6), including 5 for theft, 1 for robbery, 2 for larceny, and 1 for unlawful seizure of a motor vehicle.

In the Balakhivka Social Rehabilitation School for Boys in the Kirovohrad region (designed for 180 children), pursuant to Order of the Ministry of Education and Science of Ukraine No. 915 dated 7 August 2014, the Makiivka Vocational Social Rehabilitation School for Boys is temporarily located; currently, 9 children are held there (compared to 15 children a year ago), including 1 for murder, 1 for larceny, 6 for theft, 1 for fraud, 1 for unlawful seizure of a motor vehicle, 1 for intentional infliction of grievous bodily harm, and 1 for unlawful seizure of documents, with three of them held under two articles.