This morning, Nicos Tornaritis, the President of the Parliamentary Legal Committee, stated that it is time for the Cypriot state to seriously consider relocating the Central Prisons, after a visit by MPs to the prisons.
The purpose of the visit was for MPs to see firsthand Special Wing 8, the area where minors and individuals up to 21 years old are held.
According to Mr. Tornaritis, the population in the prisons now exceeds 1,000 individuals, while their capacity is for 545.
Regarding the juvenile wing, he said the space isn’t bad.
MPs inspected the areas and saw for themselves that young inmates do not come into contact with serious offenders, nor can any object be thrown from another area into their recreation space.
The newly appointed Deputy Prison Director, Charis Philippides, listed his three priorities, which are modernizing the correctional system, reducing overcrowding, and combating corruption.
Regarding the problem of drug and mobile phone smuggling in prisons, Mr. Philippides spoke about implementing an action plan prepared in coordination with the Ministry of Justice and added that the results will be visible to the public.
Finally, he mentioned that combating corruption is one of his red lines, emphasizing zero tolerance for cases within the Prison staff, whom he stated support him as they work under difficult conditions.
