construction of a new prison for 2,000 convicts, where inmates from the prison building and the dormitories of the Sofia prison will be moved. Medical services in the prisons were a great problem in 2010 and the number of inmate complaints related to the quality and quantity of medical treatment increased. This is due to several factors: insufficient funding, lack of sufficient medical staff and, last but not least, isolation of prison medical services from the national healthcare system in terms of facility standards, administration, number of medical check-ups, reporting, statistics, prophylactics and prevention. Although the Ministry of Justice is aware of this problem, it has not initiated any steps to deal with prison medical centers that do not comply with the requirements of the Medical Institutions Act. Apart from these problems, there is a lack of independent control over medical activities and over the sanitary and hygienic conditions which directly affect inmates‟ health status. The prison administration‟s obvious inability to put an end to the access to drugs behind bars has led to the use of one syringe by several inmates, and therefore to a constant increase in the number of HIV-positive inmates. In different media events in 2010, the prison administration reported that the prisons are a conducive environment for the spread of HIV and hepatitis, but did not take any action to study the issue or to try to prevent an epidemic. Inmates with higher social status (so-called VIP prisoners), who were released for medical reasons while serving their sentences, were one of the main media topics associated with penitentiary facilities in 2010. In such cases, public attention focuses on facts that may not be a violation of material law but which do not fall within the public understanding of the institutions‟ proper behavior. In some prisons, the inequality between this inmate category and the rest of the prison population, as well as VIP prisoners‟ privileged status, is so obvious that it provides grounds to assume the existence of corruption. Unlike the penitentiary systems in most European countries, Bulgaria still imposes life sentences without parole. In reality, such a sentence cannot be commuted in any way except by pardon. However, no one sentenced to life without parole has ever been pardoned to date. This sentence leaves the convict no hope for a free life and exceeds the admissible limits of suffering and humiliation. In August the prison workers‟ union called for an increase in security personnel, arguing that prison security is “practically minimal.” The insufficiency of security personnel is a systemic problem in the prisons, and both staff and inmates suffer from this. This insufficiency encourages arbitrariness and attempts to use prisoners to control other prisoners. It also results in the unhindered dissemination of drugs, irregular contact, violence between inmates and tension between prisoners and guards. In the beginning of September, the government signed the Optional Protocol to the Convention against Torture and other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment. The signatories to the protocol assume the obligation to create a mechanism for regular visits to the penitentiary facilities by an independent international body (a subcommittee of the UN Committee against Torture) and national prevention bodies. The purpose is to eliminate torture and cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment.
Investigative Detention Centers In 2010 the investigative detention centers in Bulgaria were much more populated than in previous years. A total of 1,283 accused individuals were detained at the 43 investigative detention centers by December 31, 2010. Figure 4 – Number of accused at the investigative detention centers by December 31, by year
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