OSCE supports exhibition on Kyrgyzstan’s prisons

An OSCE-supported exhibition by French photographer Eric Gourlan opened on 18 October 2013 at the Kyrgyzstan’s Theatre of Fine Arts.

The exhibition features 40 pictures Gourlan took in two men’s colonies, a colony for women and a colony for adolescents. The images reflect the everyday routine of both the detainees and staff members of the colonies.

“The exhibition illustrates the interim results of reform in the State Penitentiary Service (GSIN) of the Kyrgyz Republic,” said Ambassador Sergey Kapinos, Head of the OSCE Centre in Bishkek. “The very fact that a French photographer was given an opportunity to spend some time on the territory of closed penitentiary facilities is a sign of the increasing openness of the Kyrgyz penitentiary system and the commitment of the administration of the State Penitentiary Service to enhanced transparency.”

Kapinos emphasised  that the project is proof of effective co-operation between the OSCE Centre in Bishkek and Kyrgyz authorities in implementing reforms aimed at democratization, enhancing transparency of the penitentiary system, and working in accordance with international human rights standards.

The exhibition will be open till 30 October 2013.

The project is being implemented with support from the OSCE Centre in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan’s State Penitentiary Service, non-governmental organizations Egl and Freedom House.