Drug Use and HIV in Prisons in Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan

"Incarceration often makes things worse. Drugs are widely available in most prisons, and HIV transmission is a serious risk given the difficulty in obtaining clean injecting material and other prevention commodities such as condoms. In Tajikistan, for example, the number of HIV cases in prisons is steadily rising. Personal testimonies indicate that heroin is fairly easy to find now in prisons81.

"Data from Kyrgyzstan also suggest that drugs are widely available in prison settings, with reports of drug use varying from 20% to 50%82. Prisoners often reportedly have injected dimedrol, a particularly caustic and dangerous substance, and suffered life-threatening injuries."

Source

Merkinaite, S. A war against people who use drugs: the costs. Eurasian Harm Reduction Network (EHRN): Vilnius, Lithuania, 2012.