There are no "secret SBU prisons" in Ukraine, and rumors of systemic human rights violations are being spread by pro-Russian propagandists. This was stated by the Head of the Security Service Ivan Bakanov during a coordination meeting of heads of state law enforcement agencies, which took place at the Prosecutor General's Office on June 4 in Kyiv.
"Ukraine is at war, including a hybrid war. We protect ourselves not only from Russian bullets, but also from information attacks and huge deliberate lie. So we became accustomed to constant “fake news" about "secret SBU prisons." I would like to emphasize once again that the Security Service does not have any secret prisons where someone is allegedly tortured. Secret prisons of SBU are fantasies of the Russian propagandists, - Ivan Bakanov stated.

The head of the Security Service of Ukraine stressed that today the Security Service pays special attention to preventing human rights violations or tortures: “Justice must be strong. But it should not go beyond the statutory limit. This is the limit of tortures and humiliation." Separately, Ivan Bakanov noted that since 2017, the SBU has a special group for cooperation with international and human rights organizations, headed by the Deputy Chairman of the SBU.

"We are studying in details all the appeals and reports of the UN Monitoring Mission for Human Rights in Ukraine. We conduct inspections and at the same time openly tell our international partners: if you see any violations in the work of the SBU, contact the prosecutor's office immediately. Everyone who breaks the law must be held accountable. And employees of the Security Service are no exception,” - the head of the SBU summed up. The Prosecutor General of Ukraine Iryna Venediktova also confirmed that she strongly opposes concealment of any fact of tortures that degrade human dignity. "We are always ready to cooperate with all agencies, representatives of the public sector and international partners. Countering human rights violations by law enforcement officers is a priority for the prosecutor's office in 2020,” Iryna Venediktova added. 

We recall that the coordination meeting was attended by the Prosecutor General of Ukraine Iryna Venediktova, the Minister of Internal Affairs Arsen Avakov, Acting Director of the State Bureau of Investigations Oleksandr Sokolov, Minister of Justice of Ukraine Denys Malyuska, Verkhovna Rada Commissioner for Human Rights Lyudmyla Denisova and others.   The meeting proposed a number of measures that will allow law enforcement agencies to more effectively prevent and detect actions that degrade the honor and dignity of detainees.