The FSIN proposes to change the rules for telephone conversations between convicts and detainees and their relatives. Among the innovations are automatic decryption and translation of conversations in foreign languages, as well as granting the service itself the authority to establish the procedure for such calls. The draft order was published for public discussion, which will last until October 31.
Currently, the procedure for telephone conversations is regulated by an order of the Ministry of Justice from 2022. Convicts in colonies are allowed to make up to 12 calls per year, each lasting no more than 15 minutes. They can pay for them themselves or through relatives.
Before making a call, the prisoner must submit an application to the head of the colony. It indicates the phone number, name, and address of the subscriber, as well as the language in which the conversation is planned.
If a convict calls a person not listed in the application, uses obscene language, or insults the interlocutor, the institution's administration may interrupt the conversation. In pre-trial detention centers, restrictions are stricter — each call requires separate permission from the investigator or court.
Now the FSIN proposes to change the procedure for monitoring conversations in foreign languages. If institution staff do not know the language, currently a translator, paid from the federal budget, is invited to check the recording. Under the new project, speech will be automatically decrypted and translated into Russian using software and technical means.
Vladislav Egiyan, a lawyer at the "Bondyakov and Partners" collegium, believes that the transfer of powers may complicate appeals against refusals of telephone conversations. He also proposes to enshrine the right of convicts to free video calls, which are currently provided only if technically feasible.
Another proposed change concerns who will establish the rules for telephone communication. Currently, restrictions are approved by the Ministry of Justice in agreement with the Prosecutor General's Office. The FSIN wants to obtain the right to independently regulate this area.