Prison officer’s union sounds alarm after blood exposure incident

Local central prisonsNicosiaTop Newsunions Prison officer’s union sounds alarm after blood exposure incident 20 Year Old Alleges Threats, Beatings In Prison Relevant News Prison officer’s union sounds alarm after blood exposure incident 5 August 2026 Livestock breeders block Larnaca veterinary office with trucks 5 August 2026 Fifth suspect arrested over planned Cyprus terror attacks 5 August 2026 newsroom 5 August 2026 FacebookXWhatsAppEmailPrintViber Prison officers’ union ISOTITA has raised the alarm over what it called extremely serious conditions at the Central Prisons, citing drug trafficking, indiscipline and what it called criminal understaffing, and directing sharp criticism at the Ministry of Justice. In a statement, the union pointed to a specific incident in which an officer was exposed to a detainee’s blood during a violent altercation and now faces months of medical monitoring. Officer exposed to blood during violent episode According to the union, a frontline officer stepped in between detainees a few days ago to stop a serious violent episode, doing so with bare hands, as officers always do, and prevented the situation from escalating further. The officer came away with a third party’s blood on him. Since then, ISOTITA said, the officer has been under medical monitoring for the risk of a bloodborne disease, undergoing repeated tests over several months, a period in which no test result is conclusive, with his family waiting alongside him. He continues to report for duty as normal, the statement added. The union said it would not name the officer or disclose the illness in question or any other health information relating to him or any third party, saying it knows firsthand what it means for a worker’s health to become public material and would not do that to anyone. It said the ministry knows exactly which incident is being referred to and should have a written record of it. The union added that it never asked which union the officer belongs to, saying that he is a colleague and that this is enough. Incident was foreseeable, union says The union said the incident was not a bolt from the blue but the expected result of known and documented conditions. It cited findings from the Council of Europe’s Committee for the Prevention of Torture (CPT), which recorded high levels of violence between detainees, inadequate medical care and, most critically, that chronic understaffing left staff unable to guarantee safety within the wings. ISOTITA also cited the Permanent Criminal Court of Nicosia, which in case 19600/2022 made a judicial finding of drug trafficking and use inside the Central Prisons. It argued that when an employer knows drugs circulate on its premises, that violence is a daily occurrence and that staffing is inadequate, exposure to blood stops being an accident and becomes something that was foreseeable and preventable. The statement said occupational health and safety legislation leaves no discretion, requiring a written risk assessment, protective measures, appropriate equipment and staff training, and said this is a legal obligation rather than a favour granted by the employer. It said it is formally asking, and expects a written answer, on whether a written risk assessment exists for biological risk in the wings of the Central Prisons, when it was drawn up and last revised, what written protocol is triggered when an officer is exposed to blood, and who applied it in this case. Union says minister has ignored its letters ISOTITA said this is not the first time it has raised the issue. On May 7, 2026, it said it formally requested protection of frontline staff health, including medical screening after exposure, and said it never received a substantive response. It said this silence was not an administrative oversight; according to the union’s account, the Minister of Justice and Public Order stated publicly, on camera, that he does not and will not take its letters into account. Union questions prison project timeline The union said that instead of measures, it has received announcements: committees, studies, site selection, an action plan, high-security fencing and a “dead zone” of 40 to 60 metres around the future building. It said the timeline was set by the minister himself: construction to begin before the end of 2027, with completion no earlier than 2030, meaning four to five years of building and commissioning. On those figures, the union said, its members will continue working in and out of the current building for at least another 1,200 nights. It said it had asked for protective measures and received architecture instead, adding that no blueprint has ever stopped a haemorrhage and no floor plan has ever prevented transmission of disease. Staffing shortfall and capacity concerns The union also raised what it said remains an unanswered question: the new facility is designed for 1,250 detention places, but the union asked how many prison officers the Justice Ministry plans to hire. It said that today, in infrastructure designed for around 600 people, roughly 1,200 are held. By its own estimate, more than 150 posts need to be filled, and it said the most recent recruitment drive confirmed this in the worst possible way, with only 68 of 90 advertised posts filled. The statement said this applies across closed, open and semi-open wings, the juvenile facility and the Mennoyia site, and argued that beds without staff to match do not mean less risk but more. It said the state is planning a dead zone around the future building, while inside the current one, the dead zone is the distance separating one officer from the next. Four demands, seven-day deadline ISOTITA said it is demanding four specific, measurable actions and is seeking a written response within seven days: Comprehensive protection against biological risks: A written risk assessment for each wing Adequate personal protective equipment on every shift and in every wing, not confined to a single office cupboard Disinfectants and materials for safe handling of biological material A written, recorded protocol to follow after exposure, including immediate medical referral, a full course of testing, vaccination coverage where indicated, psychological support and formally guaranteed leave time with no financial or disciplinary penalty for the officer concerned Urgent staffing: immediate filling of vacant posts and a binding timetable for permanent staffing, with figures and dates, saying announcements do not cover a wing. Decongestion without delay: a substantial expansion of electronic monitoring for remand prisoners, a sharp increase in community service, and use of every lawful alternative measure, saying decongestion does not need bulldozers, it needs decisions. Humane working conditions: an end to staff being locked behind manually operated doors, rational shift patterns and substantive training in managing incidents, all of which it said has been submitted in writing repeatedly and left unanswered. The union said it is not seeking to halt the 2030 project and wants it carried out, and carried out properly. It said it is asking that no one be made to bear the cost of the wait, arguing that the measures it is calling for do not cost millions and do not require four years, only a signature and the basic political will to treat staff health as at least as important as the building’s model. It said that for as long as these are not granted, responsibility is on record, with names, dates and documents. The statement has been copied to the Commissioner for Administration and the Protection of Human Rights and the Department of Labour Inspection, and forms part of material the union is maintaining before the relevant European and international bodies. ISOTITA said it is not asking for privileges. It said it is asking to go home the way its members left it: alive and unharmed. Subscribe to our Newsletter Latest News Livestock breeders block Larnaca veterinary office with trucks Fifth suspect arrested over planned Cyprus terror attacks UK finds AI models tried to trick coders into cyberattacks University of Cyprus to build 890 parking spaces, solving longstanding problem Moonless skies set to boost Perseid meteor shower over Cyprus German police investigate drone found at Leipzig airport, DHL operations affected US and Iran having ‘very good discussions’, Trump says Follow en.philenews on Google News and be the first to know all the news about Cyprus and the world.