The European Prison Litigation Network, the European Criminal Bar Association, Fair Trials, DIGNITY – Danish Institute Against Torture, Avocats.be, Forum Penal – Associação de Advogados Penalistas, Promo-LEX and Protection for Prisoners of Ukraine have submitted a joint contribution to the public consultation on the next EU Strategy on Victims’ Rights, calling for the advances introduced by the revised Victims’ Rights Directive to be made effective in detention, where institutional barriers, dependence on the authorities and risks of reprisals obstruct reporting, protection, support and redress.
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We argue that the new Strategy should:
Retain a specific focus on access to justice for prisoners who are victims of crime. This would be consistent with the previous Strategy and would also enable the full implementation of key provisions of the revised Directive concerning secure reporting channels, protection against reprisals, support for victims of torture, and access to legal information, advice and legal aid. To this end, the Strategy should task the European Commission with drafting guidance on the transposition and practical implementation of the revised Directive in detention. Furthermore, the Strategy should integrate monitoring of safeguards on access to justice in detention into the Rule of Law cycle. Lastly, in view of persisting issues concerning access to justice in closed settings, the Strategy should task the European Commission, as a longer-term objective, with assessing remaining gaps in protection and the need for minimum standards on procedural rights in closed settings, including prisons, and considering legislative proposals in this area.
Guarantee the full and meaningful involvement of civil society and professional bodies (lawyers, judges, medical organisations) in the implementation of the revised Directive. The Strategy should in particular ensure that organisations with relevant expertise are not excluded as a result of expressing critical views or challenging the practices of public authorities, including through litigation.
Strengthen the role of civil society organisations in protecting victims of crime in detention, through the establishment of a legal and practical framework enabling independent civil society scrutiny, documentation and reporting of abuses, and legal assistance. This requires practical measures ensuring independent access to places of detention, prisoners and relevant information; confidential communication with prisoners; and protection against reprisals. These measures, which enable organisations to identify abuses and assist victims in seeking justice, should be accompanied by long-term funding, provided with full respect for civil society organisations’ independence.
Reinforce knowledge of victimisation in prison, both by expanding the scope of data collection by State institutions and by encouraging EU funding for independent research on specific areas of the victims’ rights framework.
Draw on the experience of candidate countries to inform the specific measures envisaged by the Commission to ensure that victims’ rights are upheld in times of crisis. The experience of Ukraine, where the war has exposed prisoners to shelling of detention facilities, forcible transfers and deportations, underscores the need for the EU to play an active role in developing standards protecting prisoners in armed conflict under international humanitarian law. At a practical level, the EU should take measures (from civil society funding to institutional support) to help secure the release and safe return of Ukrainians held in Russia or occupied Ukrainian territories, and to ensure that those who have returned have effective access to recognition as victims, support and reparation, irrespective of their previous detention or conviction. Beyond the situation of Ukraine, support should also be provided to civil society organisations assisting victims of unlawful detention, torture and ill-treatment in Moldova’s Transnistrian region, and Georgia’s Abkhazia and South Ossetia.
