Prison officers blame chronic overcrowding and severe staff shortages, warning that escalating violence is putting both inmates and guards at risk.
Two fights breaking out at the same time in different wings of Cyprus’ Central Prisons have renewed warnings that conditions inside the country’s main prison are becoming increasingly difficult and potentially dangerous to control.
The prison officers’ branch of the ISOTITA trade union says years of staff shortages and overcrowding have created a situation that now threatens both the officers working behind the gates and the prisoners in their care.
And while prisons are largely hidden from everyday public view, the union argues that what happens inside them should concern society as a whole. The state is responsible not only for keeping people in custody but also for keeping them and those guarding them safe.
In a strongly worded statement, ISOTITA described the situation at the Central Prisons as “out of control” and warned that repeated violent incidents can no longer be dismissed as isolated events.
The latest, according to the union, came on Aug. 5, when two separate fights reportedly erupted at roughly the same time.
One occurred in Wing 5 and left an inmate injured, while another took place in Wing 2B. The union said both incidents should be recorded in the prison administration's official incident logs.
ISOTITA says it has been warning authorities in writing for months that overcrowding combined with too few prison officers has made the facility increasingly difficult to manage.
It also claims Justice Minister Marios Fytiris publicly said he did not take the union's letters into consideration and would not do so.
The union says Wednesday's violence was not simply “one bad day,” pointing to a series of serious incidents over the past year.
Among them, it referred to an alleged rape of a prisoner in Wing 5 in September 2025, which media reports at the time said had been filmed. The allegations remain the subject of a criminal investigation.
The union also cited a June fight involving sharp objects that resulted in injuries and the discovery of makeshift weapons, as well as a fire in a maximum-security wing in July that left a prison officer needing hospital treatment after inhaling smoke.
ISOTITA also raised the persistent problem of drugs entering the prison, referring to a previous Nicosia Criminal Court case in which drug trafficking inside the facility was established.
At the heart of its complaint, however, is manpower.
The union points to findings by the European Committee for the Prevention of Torture, saying chronic understaffing has made it difficult for prison personnel to guarantee safety inside the wings.
For the union, that creates risks on both sides of the cell door.
“When within this custody there are rapes, stabbings and arson, these are not accidents,” ISOTITA said, arguing that the situation represents a failure by the state affecting prisoners and staff alike.
The organization is also accusing the government of trying to silence criticism rather than deal with the problems being raised.
It pointed to the July 31 dismissal of the branch's vice president and spokesperson, who is now its elected president. According to ISOTITA, he was dismissed without warning or compensation while proceedings relating to the matter remain pending before six national and international bodies. None has yet issued a final decision, the union said.
ISOTITA has also complained of unequal treatment between unions, claiming the state has for years provided funding to a rival organization while it has received none.
The union has now given authorities seven days to respond in writing to a list of demands.
These include urgent recruitment of additional staff, immediate action to reduce overcrowding, better protection of officers from biological health risks, and improved working conditions.
Its final warning is blunt: every day that passes without action increases the risk of something more serious happening.
The allegations and criticism contained in the statement are those of ISOTITA, and the announcement did not include a response from the Justice Ministry or Central Prisons administration.
But beyond the increasingly bitter dispute between a union and the authorities is a larger question for Cyprus.
A prison is supposed to punish people through the loss of their freedom, not expose inmates or staff to uncontrolled violence. And if officers responsible for maintaining order are warning that they no longer have the manpower to do that safely, what happens behind the prison walls stops being simply a prison problem.
It becomes a public one.
