#17 - JRL 7285
Public Council of Russian Justice Ministry Lobbying for
Penal Reform
Rossiyskaya Gazeta
6 August 2003
Report by Vladislav Kulikov:
"Human Rights Advocates Will Have Offices in the
Ministry of Justice Building"
The first meeting of the Public Council of the RF Ministry of Justice on the ministry's system for the execution of criminal judgments was held yesterday. The council members now include prominent human rights advocates.
The meeting could be described as a milestone in the country's history. It was the first attempt to establish public oversight of the activities of a law enforcement agency--the ministry's Main Penal Administration, which certainly meets the definition of this type of agency. At any rate, that is how the human rights advocates on the council see it. Valeriy Borshchev, once a State Duma deputy and now the head of a public charity, was elected chairman. Aleksandr Burkin, the leader of the Orthodox Russia movement, was chosen to serve as deputy chairman. Mariya Kannabikh from the Prisoners' Aid Charitable Foundation will be the council secretary. The council members (13 in all) also include Lyudmila Alekseyeva, the head of the Moscow Helsinki Group, journalist Boris Gevorkyan, deputy director of an Interfax division, and others. The public council will have its offices in the new Ministry of Justice building. Minister of Justice Yuriy Chayka promised to be accessible at all times to the members of the public council.
Of course, ministry officials believe that public oversight of prisons has existed for a long time. Vladimir Yalunin, the head of the ministry's GUIN (Main Penal Administration), reported that about 350 public organizations are already working with agencies of the penal system. Ministry officials maintain that today's penal institutions are more open and humane than the Soviet-era penitentiaries.
"We have made colossal progress in the five years since the penal system was turned over to the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Justice," Minister of Justice Yuriy Chayka observed.
"Our common and principal objective is a penal system with a human face," the minister said at the meeting. "Working with public organizations and human rights groups, we will take joint measures to plan the reform of the penal system."
Human rights advocates are hoping for the passage of a special law this fall on public oversight of the observance of human rights in penal institutions. GUIN personnel, however, believe that excellent contacts have been established with human rights advocates even without this law. Boards of public guardians are active in 38 regions, working on programs for the social rehabilitation and adaptation of convicts. They have organized many events for these purposes, including the already famous national competitions for the best vocal performance by convicts--"Beauty Bush," best poem--"I Will Restore My Good Name," and best children's drawing--"Mama, I Will Draw You the Sun." At present, for example, paintings by Russian convicts are displayed at an international conference in Toronto. Public organizations have to be given the credit for all of this. Actually, it would be wrong to focus only on the good points of this situation. Released convicts have to face numerous problems: They have difficulty finding jobs and sometimes cannot obtain passports. People encountering too many problems after their release are likely to revert to a life of crime. Public organizations are trying to help these ex-convicts.
Another of the significant projects of human rights organizations is the promotion of alternative forms of punishment. A type of suspended sentence entailing community service will be instituted next year. Experiments with this type of sentence are already being conducted in several Russian regions. Another element of the penal system--halfway houses--will go into effect in 2005. This will require 23 billion rubles for the construction of special buildings. The ability of the state to come up with this sum is in question. In any case, this will be impossible without the help of public organizations.
This was the second meeting of the Justice Ministry's Public Council. The first was held in June, and the decision to hold regular meetings was made at that time. The council's main function, according to Minister of Justice Yuriy Chayka, is "to define the strategy of our interaction in penal reform." The ministry actively supports the human rights advocates' wish to set up a system similar to the British one for public oversight of the prisons. The appropriate legislative bill was submitted to the Committee on the Affairs of Public Organizations and Religious Associations, and if this law is passed, the public overseers will be granted almost unconditional access to all of the restricted facilities of the penal system.
The human rights advocates were in an extremely optimistic mood yesterday. "As soon as similar councils are set up in the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Federal Security Service, we can stop worrying about human rights," they declared.
Top • Next
Aug. 12, 2003:
#7285 • #7286 • JRL Home
- Back to the Top -