Information regarding the regulatory resolution of the Constitutional Court
(№ 6 of 27 March 2023)
The Constitutional Court considered a citizen's appeal regarding the constitutionality of the provisions of paragraphs three and five, subparagraphs 1) and 3) of paragraph six of Article 141 of the Penal Enforcement Code (hereinafter – the Penal Enforcement Code) concerning the differences between convicts serving life imprisonment (in ordinary and strict conditions of detention) and those sentenced to certain terms of imprisonment, expressed in the length of time for changing the conditions of serving the sentence, in the amount of money spent monthly on food and basic necessities, as well as the number and duration of visits during the year.
According to the subject of the appeal, these provisions of the PEC contradict the constitutional provisions that ‘all are equal before the law and the court’ and that ‘no one may be discriminated against in any way on the basis of other circumstances’.
The Constitutional Court considers that the differentiation of conditions for serving a sentence should be reasonable, should not lead to discrimination and should not extend to measures that stimulate the correction of convicted persons and ensure their re-socialisation. The treatment of prisoners sentenced to imprisonment, regardless of the length of the sentence determined by the court, should contribute to their personal reform and social rehabilitation. The provisions of the verified norm of the Penal Enforcement Code infringe on the constitutional rights of convicted persons and have no objective, reasonable justification, taking into account the identity or similarity of the situation with regard to life imprisonment convicts and convicts sentenced to certain terms of imprisonment serving their sentences in the same type of institution.
The Constitutional Court recognised the third, fifth and sixth paragraphs 1) of Article 141 of the Penal Enforcement Code as being in conformity with the Constitution and found subparagraph 3) of the sixth paragraph of Article 141 of the Penal Enforcement Code to be unconstitutional and ruled that the amendments to the Penal Enforcement Code should be extended to life prisoners serving their sentences under ordinary conditions with regard to the number of short and long visits before the amendments were enacted.