On 17 March, the Committee on Justice and Administration held a sitting in Zabela Correction Facility near Pozarevac. The sitting was chaired by the Committee Chairman, Bosko Ristic, and was attended by the Minister of Justice, Snezana Malovic, and the head of the Directorate for Enforcement of Prison Sanctions, Milan Obradovic.

Greeting all present, Committee Chairman Bosko Ristic stressed that one of the reasons why the Committee sitting is being held in Zabela is to directly demonstrate parliamentary control over the Directorate for Enforcement of Prison Sanctions. He announced that soon an independent body, comprised of experts outside of the Directorate, will be formed to control the situation in the prisons.

Minister Malovic outlined the Information of the Ministry of Justice concerning the measures for the dismissal of Zabela Correction Facility manager and head of the institution’s Reform Service. She stated that, like Zabela, all the prisons in Serbia are undergoing analysis by the Ministry of Justice, one of the reasons for which is the early release on parole of the former deputy head of the Security Information Agency, Milorad Bracanovic.

Directorate head Obradovic briefed the Committee on the situation in the area of enforcement of prison sanctions. Obradovic stated that 10,526 persons are serving a prison sentence in 28 penal institutions in Serbia, and in the last five months that number has risen by 1,500, which used to be a yearly increase, and which surpasses all capacities, making the construction of new prisons a necessity according to him.