The Kyiv detention center lacks shelter for both staff and inmates
The Kyiv Detention Center has no shelters for the approximately 3,000 people who are detained and work there, and there is simply no space to build new shelters due to a lack of available land. The Ministry of Justice acknowledges the problem and says that for now, the facility has to operate according to internal protocols without adequate protection.
At the Kyiv Detention Center, the safety situation during air raid alerts has effectively left no backup plan—there are no protective structures capable of simultaneously accommodating both the detainees and staff.
The Ministry of Justice explains that this concerns approximately 3,000 people, for whom new shelters or fallout shelters are theoretically needed, but in practice, there is simply nowhere to build them, as the detention center’s grounds are densely built up and there is no open space left. “The state institution ‘Kyiv Detention Center’ lacks a stock of civil defense shelters,” the Department for the Execution of Criminal Sentences noted in its response.
The department added that specialists, together with the State Emergency Service and other agencies, have repeatedly inspected the area, checking basements, ground-floor rooms, and underground passages; however, these spaces were also deemed unsuitable for sheltering people during shelling. It is specifically emphasized that even modular shelters cannot be installed due to the dense arrangement of buildings and the lack of technical capacity for new structures, so any construction is effectively blocked by the very layout of the facility.
Despite this, the Ministry of Justice states that every pretrial detention center has its own internal emergency response protocols, which depend on the specific conditions of the buildings and the number of people present; however, these instructions are not disclosed, citing security concerns. “The lack of information about protocols and action plans complicates the enemy’s task of destroying them or disrupting their normal operation,” the department explained.
The department emphasizes that despite all restrictions, staff are obligated to ensure the safety of people in detention centers; however, there are currently no real possibilities for adequate shelter. This is stated in a response from the Department for the Enforcement of Criminal Sentences of the Ministry of Justice of Ukraine.
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