The suicide-rate in Slovakia's prisons is among the highest in the EU, according to a report on the daily Pravda. Last year three inmates committed suicide and another 34 attempted it.
The daily quotes a study done by the Council of Europe revealing that more than 50 percent of all deaths in Slovak jails are caused by suicide. The prison service has decided to tackle the issue by installing more CCTV cameras in jails in areas inhabited by high-risk inmates. They will also be used to monitor the behaviour of the guards too, following reports that staff had been bullying inmates at a jail in Kosice last year.
Psychologists, however, point out that cameras won't be enough to tackle the problem of suicide. They argue that prisoners on remand are particularly vulnerable as they have to wait for excessively lengthy periods until their cases are brought to trial. Their living conditions are often worse than those of convicted inmates.
