Many of those tortured in detention have seen their health deteriorate dramatically. Still, they continue to serve their term in prisons or in prison hospitals where they do not get appropriate treatment. The UN Human Rights Committee found in 1998 that Petre Gelbakhiani and Irakli Dokvadze did not get a fair trial after being ill-treated in detention, and that they were entitled to a proper remedy, including their release . They are still imprisoned at this time. It is well-known that in most former Soviet republics, prison conditions are deplorable.
Prisons are overcrowded and unhygienic.
Due to lack of space, prisoners often have to sleep in shifts, their meals are of poor quality, and medical care is virtually nonexistent. The IHF supports the initiative of the Swiss and Costa Rican governments to develop an Optional Protocol to the Convention against Torture, aiming at assisting States to prevent torture through making possible inspections of places of detention. The IHF is distributing its full report, Torture and other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment in the OSCE Region, at this meeting.