Knowledge Management System

Which international (human rights) standards are covered in training for prison officers?

Following topics are included in the subject Basics of Law and Management of the Corps of Prison and Court Guard:

- Standard Minimum Rules for the Treatment of Prisoners, European Prison Rules (2 lessons)
- Independent national and international organizations dealing with human rights issues (Ombudsperson, Slovak National Centre for Human Rights, Commissioner for Children, Commissioner for Disabled Persons, United Nations, Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe, European Committee for the Prevention of Torture and Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment, European Court of Human Rights) (2 lessons)

Matters of the Standard Minimum Rules for the Treatment of Prisoners are also addressed in the following topics:
- Prison sentence execution legislation, basic principles of the prison sentence execution (1 lesson)
- Professional ethics of prison officers and Code of Ethics of prison officers (1 lesson)
- Treatment of prisoners in prison sentence execution (3 lessons)


Specialised course for regime officers, Specialised course for shift heads

- Prohibition of torture and inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment in international documents and findings from visits of the Committee for the Prevention of Torture and Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment to the Slovak Republic (1 lesson in each course).

Which areas of the revised Standard Minimum Rules for the Treatment of Prisoners (Nelson Mandela Rules) are covered in training for prison officers?

The revised Standard Minimum Rules for the Treatment of Prisoners are included in the initial vocational training for prison officers. They gain the basic information on the Rules and on their application in prison practice.

What is the structure (length/format) of the training on the Nelson Mandela Rules?

Issues of the Standard Minimum Rules for the Treatment of Prisoners and the European Prison Rules are included in the initial vocational training for prison officers as an individual topic in the range of 2 lessons. Certain areas of the Standard Minimum Rules are included also in the related topics within the subject Penology that focuses on matters of pre-trial detention and prison sentence execution.

Do all staff receive training on the Nelson Mandela Rules?

Yes, the initial vocational training is compulsory for all prison officers, i.e. for all newly recruited prison officers.

How are prison officers assessed on what they have learned about the Nelson Mandela Rules?

The above-mentioned topics are a part of the final exams of the initial vocational training.

What support would help you to improve training on the Nelson Mandela Rules?

Sharing of experience and information with other countries/institutions and studying materials in the Slovak language.

Which international (human rights) standards are covered in training for prison officers?

The prison officers' training includes the European Prison Rules as well as all as the entire European system for the protection of human rights including the case law of the European Court of Human Rights. The Mandela rules are cited in the introduction in the historical account of the progression of universal or regional texts and recommendations aimed at protecting people deprived of their liberty.

Which areas of the revised Standard Minimum Rules for the Treatment of Prisoners (Nelson Mandela Rules) are covered in training for prison officers?

Although the textual reference isn't always explicit, all the topics concerned by these rules (or, more commonly in the French system, by European prison rules), are covered by the training program for prison officers.

What is the structure (length/format) of the training on the Nelson Mandela Rules?

The sessions relating to the internal and external control of penitentiary establishments during which European and international instruments are mentioned have an overall volume of 3 hours. On the other hand, it should be emphasized that without being the subject of explicit references, the substantial content of the minimum rules feeds the entire training (6 months).

Do all staff receive training on the Nelson Mandela Rules?

Yes, if we interpret such training as previously referenced in the answers.

How are prison officers assessed on what they have learned about the Nelson Mandela Rules?

through multiple-choice questions

What support would help you to improve training on the Nelson Mandela Rules?

Which international (human rights) standards are covered in training for prison officers?

> Universal Declaration of Human Rights (United Nations)
> European Convention on Human Rights (Council of Europe)
> Constitution of Austria
> Individual federal constitutional laws relating to human rights

Which areas of the revised Standard Minimum Rules for the Treatment of Prisoners (Nelson Mandela Rules) are covered in training for prison officers?

The "Standard Minimum Rules for the Treatment of Prisoners (Nelson Mandela Rules)" are not taught in the Austrian Prison Service Academy.
The "European Prison Rules" of the Council of Europe are discussed in the teaching curriculum.

What is the structure (length/format) of the training on the Nelson Mandela Rules?

In the basic training for prison officers, human rights training is offered for 16 lessons of 50 minutes each.

Do all staff receive training on the Nelson Mandela Rules?

Uniformed prison staff receive 16 lessons of human rights training, civilian staff 8 lessons.

How are prison officers assessed on what they have learned about the Nelson Mandela Rules?

Human Rights are part of the final oral exam.

What support would help you to improve training on the Nelson Mandela Rules?

Which international (human rights) standards are covered in training for prison officers?

Professional training programs for prison officers are aimed at studying the basic provisions of the current international standards of human rights and treatment to prisoners, the following documents are included to the curriculum:
1. The Universal Declaration of Human Rights
2. European Prison Rules (1987)
3. The European Convention on Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms (ECHR) (1950)
4. The European Convention for the Prevention of Torture and Inhuman or Degrading
Treatment or Punishment 1984
5. Prison officers Code of ethics and professional conduct
6. The European Convention on Prevention of Tortures and Inhuman or Humiliating Dignity Treatment or Punishment (ratified in 1997)
7. The United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child.
8. Manual on the Effective Investigation and Documentation of Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (Istanbul Protocol) 1999.
9. Standard Minimum Rules for the Treatment of Prisoners1957.
10. United Nations Standard Minimum Rules for Non-custodial Measures (The Tokyo Rules), 1990
11. United Nations Standard Minimum Rules for the Administration of Juvenile Justice (The Beijing Rules), 1985.
12. Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD)

Which areas of the revised Standard Minimum Rules for the Treatment of Prisoners (Nelson Mandela Rules) are covered in training for prison officers?

While training the prison officers study the basic provisions of the The Standard Minimum Rules for the Treatment of Prisoners (Nelson Mandela Rules), as well as special attention is called to specific areas necessary for certain categories of prison staff.
For example, these standards are carried out by prison staff performing supervision and regime duties for maintaining the deterrence measures in prison.
Social workers are able to study non-custodial measures, employment, religion and the appropriate rehabilitation services to inmates.

What is the structure (length/format) of the training on the Nelson Mandela Rules?

As a rule, the main training program for prison staff includes the topic (redistributed) in the curriculum and the module of legal competence for international standards of human rights and treatment of prisoners (including the Nelson Mandela rules).
In addition, some chapters of Standard Minimum Rules for the Treatment of Prisoners 1957 (Nelson Mandela Rules) are integrated into training blocks, for example, when reviewing topics of dynamic, procedural and physical security.

Do all staff receive training on the Nelson Mandela Rules?

All categories of penitentiary staff receive initial training and professional training in programs designed to study the basic provisions of Nelson Mandela Rules. In addition, an in-service training program (on-the-job training) involves studying Nelson Mandela Rules.

How are prison officers assessed on what they have learned about the Nelson Mandela Rules?

As a rule, the level of knowledge of staff after training is assessed by passing tests or examinations, which include oral examination and assessment, as well as the appropriate tests on the computer.

What support would help you to improve training on the Nelson Mandela Rules?

In order to improve the training of the penitentiary staff, the exchange of experience and good practices between States (and/or relevant international organizations) will be of great importance, as well as technical assistance for better implementation of the Nelson Mandela Rules, also further exchange of information on successful practices in order to identify problems that arise in the process of implementation Nelson Mandela Rules and exchange of experience in eliminating such problems.

Which international (human rights) standards are covered in training for prison officers?

In our basic training for prison officers we cover the human rights standards by mentioning the European law standards (European human rights treaty, article 3) and the European prison rules.

Which areas of the revised Standard Minimum Rules for the Treatment of Prisoners (Nelson Mandela Rules) are covered in training for prison officers?

No this is not a part of the basic training or any other training.

What is the structure (length/format) of the training on the Nelson Mandela Rules?

See question 2

Do all staff receive training on the Nelson Mandela Rules?

See question 2

How are prison officers assessed on what they have learned about the Nelson Mandela Rules?

See question 2

What support would help you to improve training on the Nelson Mandela Rules?

See question 2

Which international (human rights) standards are covered in training for prison officers?

In the context of basic training, prison officers receive a brief overview of the following texts:
• The Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR)
• The UN Covenant I on economic, social and cultural rights, and the UN Covenant II on civil and political rights
• All of the revised standard minimum rules of the United Nations for the treatment of prisoners (Nelson Mandela Rules).
• Recommendation CM/Rec(2012)5 of the Committee of Ministers to member States on the European Code of Ethics for Prison Staff.

In addition, in general terms they study the following legal texts:
• Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (of 10 December 1984), and the Istanbul Protocol
• Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms (of 4 November 1950)
• European Convention for the Prevention of Torture and Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (of 26 November 1987)

Finally, they examine in depth the Recommendation Rec(2006)2 of the Committee of Ministers to Member States on European Prison Rules in particular, as well as the Swiss Federal Constitution and other Swiss Federal legal bases.

Which areas of the revised Standard Minimum Rules for the Treatment of Prisoners (Nelson Mandela Rules) are covered in training for prison officers?

The standards concerning human rights, in particular the Nelson Mandela Rules, are incorporated in the Swiss legal texts. Prison officers are therefore required to address these subjects in the context of their practical experience and training.

In the context of basic training prison officers receive a brief overview concerning these rules.

What is the structure (length/format) of the training on the Nelson Mandela Rules?

These rules are covered in general terms in the context of general training programme: “Mission of the prison officer, and legal bases concerning the deprivation of liberty" which is a training syllabus lasting 9 hours in total.

Naturally, these are raised again each time in other training areas concerning the deprivation of liberty.

Do all staff receive training on the Nelson Mandela Rules?

Currently our Centre does not provide initial training before prison offers commence working in their role. Prison officers are recruited by the cantons and will already have been working in situ for one or more years before commencing our basic training. Furthermore, training also takes place in the context of the Swiss cantons.

For these reasons, we cannot currently guarantee that all personnel are trained on the Nelson Mandela Rules.

How are prison officers assessed on what they have learned about the Nelson Mandela Rules?

There is no assessment in the strict sense, but the basic training (15 weeks over two years) prepares prison officers for the Federal professional examination. This examination covers all the areas of this training.

What support would help you to improve training on the Nelson Mandela Rules?

e-learning