The new head of the main pre-trial detention centre threw the arrested Muslims into cells with the ‘blatants’. The latter are ready to use force in response.
Kyiv Pre-trial Detention Centre No. 13, better known as the Lukianivske SIZO, is always in the spotlight of the State Penitentiary Service, human rights activists and relatives of the arrested. Therefore, any drastic changes in the conditions of detention do not go unnoticed. The decision of the new head of the institution, Volodymyr Halavko, to eliminate separate cells for Muslim detainees immediately became known to members of the Public Council of the Ministry of Justice. It is under the roof of the Ministry of Justice that the Criminal Executive Service and penal institutions such as pre-trial detention centres and correctional colonies operate.
Arrested Muslims in the country’s main pre-trial detention centre have been held in separate cells for at least 7 years. This has been the case since the days when Lukianivka held several dozen detainees professing Islam in some years. The “Muslim cells” were renovated at the expense of the arrested. There are carpets on the floor, modern appliances, separate showers, and facilities for cooking halal food. By agreement with the SIZO management, those held in these cells could receive parcels of non-standard sizes, such as a whole ram. A representative of the Ingush diaspora named Ahmad himself served a year in the Lukianivka SIZO.
“There were three big ‘huts’ (cells). They were for about 20 people each. they are called “triplets” because there are four cells for three people. Mostly for Muslims: Turks, Tajiks, Uzbeks… A person comes here calmly, without conflict, and learns about the system, what is possible, what is not, how to behave… If any Muslim is thrown into a regular cell, then a conflict is bound to happen,”
– said the Komersant ukrainskyi source.
There are many reasons and pretexts for the confrontation, but the main one is related to the failure to comply with the conditions that a Muslim must endure to fulfil his religious duties. After all, Muslims pray 5 times a day, and for this purpose, ritual purity must be maintained, there must be no things and products prohibited by religion: pork fat, tobacco, alcohol, drugs, and no swearing.
Article 8 of the Law on Pre-trial Detention determines who can be held in the same cell with whom. Juveniles cannot be held with adults, women with men, previously convicted persons with those suspected of committing a crime for the first time, former law enforcement officers with other arrested persons. The law does not say anything about detention on religious grounds. But there is no ban on it either. The previous heads of SIZO No. 13 negotiated with Muslim detainees for a comfortable stay behind bars, because they wanted to keep the institution peaceful. Their cells were always in order, there were no fights, and self-government was actually in place.
Now this balance of interests has been upset. The prerequisite was a sharp decrease in the number of Muslims in the SIZO. When there were less than 20 people and they were all housed in one large cell, the administration transferred several of the detainees to other cells where criminal prisoners are held with all the peculiarities of this category of behaviour: smoking, swearing, fighting, ignoring the religious needs of others. And those who remained in the last large cell were also moved to the cells with a number of “blatants” and “priblatnionnye”.
Komersant ukrainskyi asked the administration of SIZO No. 13 for a comment, but has not yet received a response. The position of the State Penitentiary Service of the Ministry of Justice was expressed in an exclusive commentary by its deputy director, Andriy Halay.
“Look at Article 8 of the law on pre-trial detention and try to imagine how difficult it is to ensure the separation of all these categories. As for prayers, everyone is given access to observe their rituals. If I understand correctly, Muslims can do it in a different format. Just like others,”
– mr Halay said and stressed that he did not consider the lack of opportunities for collective prayer to be discrimination.
Since this is a problem for prisoners professing Islam, and the agency responsible for the implementation of their rights in SIZO does not see it as such, the likelihood of a quick resolution of the conflict is very low.
“We do not want a conflict, but we are not going to put up with the violation of our rights. We have been deprived of the opportunity to pray collectively, we have been deprived of the opportunity to receive parcels with halal (religiously permitted) food. So far, we are knocking on every door to rectify the situation. But if this does not work, we are ready to defend our rights to practice our religion by force. Especially since Ukrainian law does not prohibit it,”
– an amir (senior) told Komersant ukrainskyi amir (senior) of the arrested Muslims in Lukyanivka, ethnic Chechen Sharkhan.
At the same time, Oleh Tsvilyi, a member of the Public Council at the Ministry of Justice, who has been working on the rights of convicts and arrested persons for many years, confirmed to Komersant ukrainskyi that thanks to the activity of Muslims from SIZO No. 13, both the Ministry and other state authorities are aware of their situation.
“To be honest, I don’t understand why the management took such a step, because it is of no use to anyone. As far as I know, the State Penitentiary Service can put everything back in its place, we just need to figure out how to do it,”
– the human rights activist said.
Komersant ukrainskyi follows the developments in Kyiv SIZO No. 13.
Written by Anvar Derkach
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