Romania has made significant progress in preventing the ill-treatment of people held by the police and in prisons, according to a new report by the Council of Europe’s Committee for the Prevention of Torture (CPT). However, the committee warned that conditions in police detention facilities remain very poor and that prisons are operating at 119.5% capacity.

The report presented the findings of a 2025 visit to five police detention facilities, four prisons in Botoșani, Bucharest-Rahova, Craiova, and Iași, and two detention centres for children and young adults in Craiova and Târgu Ocna.

The CPT welcomed the authorities’ “zero-tolerance policy towards ill-treatment” and noted an improvement in police conduct. Most detainees interviewed said they had been treated professionally and respectfully, although the delegation also received some allegations of slaps, punches, and other physical ill-treatment, including from children.

“To further combat ill-treatment and impunity, the authorities should take additional measures such as training in non-coercive interviewing, expanding technological support, and providing prosecutors with their own investigators,” reads the press release.

Conditions in police detention facilities remained “deplorable,” according to the committee. Problems included overcrowding, humidity, poor hygiene, worn mattresses, and inadequate food, while many facilities remained below ground and offered limited access to natural light.

Detainees generally had no meaningful activities apart from one hour per day outdoors, often in small and poorly equipped spaces, the same report found. The CPT warned that prolonged detention under such conditions “could amount to degrading treatment.”

“The authorities should take urgent measures to offer appropriate material conditions and regime. Further, the CPT reiterates that persons placed in pre-trial detention should be under the authority of the National Prison Administration,” it said.

In prisons, the population has increased by 20% since 2020. Overcrowding was recorded at all four facilities visited and was highest in Iași, at 140% of capacity, and Botoșani, at 130%.

Many prisoners had only two to three square metres of living space, compared with the CPT’s minimum recommendation of four square metres in shared cells. Inspectors also found poorly maintained cells, inadequate furniture, worn bedding, and frequent infestations of bed bugs and cockroaches.

While the committee noted “significant progress” in preventing abuse by prison staff, it expressed concern about violence among detainees at Iași Prison and insufficient staffing across the facilities visited. It also called for improvements to healthcare, mental health support, work opportunities and vocational training.

Meanwhile, at the centres for children and young adults, most residents spoke positively about staff. However, the delegation received allegations of slaps and baton blows at Craiova and excessive force at Târgu Ocna, where violence among residents was described as frequent and severe and included sexual assaults.

“The CPT calls for an urgent review of violence-prevention policies and an enhancement of pedagogical approaches. Furthermore, staff working in these centres should not carry batons,” the source said.

In their response, the Romanian authorities said they planned to expand and modernise the prison system through investments between 2026 and 2030. They are also seeking to reinforce staffing within existing budget limits and plan to remove legal provisions treating self-harm and attempted suicide as disciplinary offences.

irina.marica@romania-insider.com

(Photo source: Inquam Photos/Octav Ganea)