Statement: Transgender Woman Raped, Humiliated, and Discriminated Against in Correctional Facilities in Kragujevac and Niš
The Association Da se zna! informs the public that it has become aware of inhuman and degrading treatment of a transgender woman who is currently serving a prison sentence in the Correctional Facility in Kragujevac. The transgender woman contacted the Association Da se zna! by letter sent to our address and also called us from the prison’s landline phone to report the inhumane treatment, humiliation, and abuse she has been subjected to by prison staff and other inmates.
On that occasion, she told us that she had been raped multiple times (first while she was imprisoned in Niš, and subsequently several times in her current place of detention in Kragujevac), that she is subjected to daily insults because of her gender identity and because she is Romani, as well as threats should she speak about these experiences. She also states that she submitted complaints regarding the treatment by prison staff (guards, supervisors), but that she was ordered to tear up and throw away all such complaints. Furthermore, prison supervisors in Niš allegedly forced her to sign a document stating that she had not been raped and that she would not file complaints about the conduct of prison staff. She additionally reports experiencing discrimination from a prison nurse in Kragujevac, to whom she complained about blood in her stool, to which the nurse responded: “What is it, did you get your period?”
Following these revelations, and given that this case involves a violation of human dignity, inhuman treatment, and breaches of prisoners’ rights guaranteed by domestic legislation and international standards, the Association Da se zna! submitted a formal request to the Directorate for the Enforcement of Criminal Sanctions, seeking approval, as a human rights organization, to visit the Correctional Facility in Kragujevac and to speak in person with the transgender woman. To date, we have received no response. In connection with this case, the Association Da se zna! will also address the Protector of Citizens (Ombudsman), requesting that a procedure be initiated to review the legality and propriety of the work of the Correctional Facility in Kragujevac. In addition, we will file a criminal complaint with the Public Prosecutor’s Office in Kragujevac for the criminal offenses of rape and abuse and torture.
Association Da se zna!
