Inter-Prisoner Violence and the Case Law of the European Court of Human Rights: Protection of Vulnerable Groups of Prisoners

Introduction: In the course of last several decades, the protection of prisoners from abuse has been significantly improved by adoption of relevant international documents and the activities of independent monitoring mechanisms. However, the focus is on abuse by state authorities, while there has been no adequate attention dedicated to violence among prisoners. Subject: The author reviews the practice of the European Court of Human Rights in the context of violence among prisoners and the protection of human rights. Method: Normative-logical method and content analysis were applied. Aim: The aim of the paper is to highlight recommendations that would be applicable in Serbia. Results: The key principles on which the court's decision-making is based in cases related to the violation of the prohibition of torture referred to in Art. 3. of the European Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms, such as the absolute prohibition of all types of abuse. Conclusion: States are obliged to undertake abuse-prevention measures i.e., to thoroughly investigate and sanction the behaviour of those responsible. Evidence gathering is not the responsibility of the prisoner, but of the state authorities. Both employees and prisoners, but also the general public need to be educated about abuse in prisons.