“Such impoverished conditions of detention, especially as regards hygiene and access to the toilets, coupled with episodes of overcrowding, can without doubt be regarded as giving rise to a breach of Article 3 of the Convention,” declares the European Court of Human Rights in its judgment in the case Mironovas and Others v Lithuania.

'A plague throughout Europe'

It is for the second time that the Strasbourg court found Lithuania in violation of prisoners’ rights due to deplorable conditions in state prisons.

Dormitory-type cells with 1.23 square meters of living space, unsanitary environment leading to "gross violations of hygiene norms," shortage of toilet facilities and furniture, insufficient lightning, smokers placed together with non-smokers, prison hospital patients suffering from an open form of tuberculosis taking showers together with other patients - the list goes on and on.

The court found violations in the cases of four out of seven complaints and awarded a total of 31,000 euros in damages. The judgment was not unanimous – Judge Pinto de Albuquerque voted in favor of all seven applicants.

"Prison overcrowding is a plague throughout Europe which reflects the inappropriateness of criminal and penal policies in most countries," he explained in his partly dissenting opinion. "Systemic deficiencies require lasting, structural solutions and are not compatible with a temporary, superficial cleanings of the prison scenario."

Failed prison reform

The plague of overcrowding seems to affect Lithuania even more than other European countries. At the end of 2013, there were 315 prisoners per 100,000 inhabitants, the highest rate in the EU and the third highest among all European countries (after Russia and Belarus).

Because of extremely poor detention conditions, some European countries refuse to extradite detainees to Lithuania, while national courts award more and more generous compensations for damages suffered by inmates.

Since 2008, the Ministry of Justice has been declaring ambitious plans for national prison reform, including construction of new facilities and promotion of alternatives to deprivation of liberty. However, the 2012 parole and probation reform failed to decrease the number of inmates, whilst the plans to build new facilities by 2017 were postponed till 2022.

Appalling indifference

Criminology experts warn the situation is getting worse. Due to overcrowding and terrible conditions, the rates of inter-prison violence, crime and inmate suicide are growing.

In 2014 report, the European Committee for the Prevention of Torture recommended to Lithuanian authorities "to make vigorous efforts to combat prison overcrowding" and take "urgent measures" to ensure acceptable conditions of detention in some of the worst detention facilities in the country. In 2016, the committee will be visiting Lithuania again.

Unfortunately, Lithuanian authorities so far demonstrated neither vigorousness nor urgency to improve the situation, only appalling indifference.