Sakunts: the major problem of prisons in Armenia is their overload

The situation in the penal enforcement institutions of Armenia is becoming worse and the lack of space remains the major problem, human rights activist Arthur Sakunts, Head of Vanadzor office of Helsinki Civil Assembly, declares. 

The inmates have to sleep in turn because of overload of the prison cells, the human rights activist told the journalists at a press-conference. 

According to Sakunts, the convicts' state of health causes great concern: the number of deceases among the inmates of the penal enforcement institutions (PEI) came to 30 in 2010. He also adduced evidence of a convict's death in "Vanadzor" penal enforcement institution as a result of having received no medical aid. 

Among the problems of penal enforcement institutions of Armenia Sakunts also marked out the inmates' communications with the external world and spending their leisure time emphasizing that problems like these cause corruption risks.  

In his turn, Arsen Babayan, Press secretary of Penal enforcement Department of the Ministry of Justice of Armenia said that the problem of overload of penal enforcement institutions really existed however its extent was exaggerated. Babayan disproved the statement that the convicts in prison cells slept in turn. 

Arsen Babayan informed that according to official data, there were 5100 inmates in the penal enforcement institutions at the moment, 140 of them female. According to him, the number of convicts generally exceeded the established standard by 800 persons. 

Babyan assured that the problem would be solved as soon as a new penal enforcement institution would be built in Armavir. 

As for the convicts' state of health, the representative of the Ministry of Justice stated that the convicts were always rendered medical aid when necessary.