Sofia Central Prison – a Bulgarian detention center, crumbling foundations and fit for demolition – derelict conditions too much to ask of anyone – even a criminal. Multi-prisoner cells, bunks stacked three stories high as well as a large count of isolation cells where prisoners spend 23 hours a day behind rusty bars, with nothing to do, vegetating their days away. Although the European Union requires 43 square feet space per inmate, prisoners in Sofia Central Prison have on average less than half. Central heating and hot running water are considered a luxury.
But that’s not all: This jail is a place of violence – inter-prisoner violence is rampant and many reports have emerged describing regular abuse by the prison guards. Australian backpacker Jock does not tire calling out the abuses against prisoners by the guards. He is one of the prisoners at Sofia Central, sentenced to 20 years for murder. Hamza, an ex-inmate from Germany, also recounts stories about abuse, rigid hierarchies and untenable prison conditions. Six months after his release, he returns to the scene of the most terrible period of his life. Advice from someone still serving his sentence: Stanislav. He says to never show weakness, always be the more aggressive, otherwise you will not survive.
It is not only the conditions in Sofia Central Prison which are considered to be among the toughest in the world. That term can also be applied to the inmates themselves. Commander Venkov and his team of prison guards have a daily battle on their hands to maintain order and discipline among the inmates. Home-made weapons, thwarted stabbings and attempted escapes are all too common occurrences.
Bulgarian nationals are detained in Sofia Central Prison for more serious crimes – 5 years to life imprisonment. In comparison, all foreign nationals – regardless of the severity of their crime and regardless where the crimes were committed, land here in Sofia Central. Afghan refugees, caught in illegal border crossing, sit alongside hardened criminals….
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