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Inmates use Bible as loo paper
09/06/2006 21:16 - (SA)
Harare - Zimbabwe's prisoners face acute food shortages and are going weeks without soap or toilet paper, reported a parliamentary committee on Friday.
Some inmates have resorted to using pages ripped from Bibles to wipe themselves clean, said the report, which sounded the alarm about deteriorating prison conditions amid Zimbabwe's worsening economic crisis.
The report found that malnutrition and disease were widespread in Zimbabwe's overcrowded jails, designed for 16 000 people but holding many more.
Prison authorities have insufficient funds to buy food, which lead to the spread of malnutrition-related ailments such as pellagra, intestinal disorders and mental disorientation.
Water and power outages were also common, said the committee, and sanitation facilities were in urgent need of repair at most facilities.
The report said blankets in the prisons go unwashed for months. The Harare Remand Prison had its water supply cut off for failing to pay its bills.
Inmates miss court appearances
Cooking pots and other kitchen implements at the prison were filthy and "not fit to carry food for human consumption".
When Chikurubi maximum security jail ran dry, water was ferried in by chain gangs wielding buckets, said the committee, but 73 inmates had diarrhea as a result of the shortages.
Zimbabwe's economic meltdown has been blamed on disruptions to the agriculture-based economy, linked to years of drought and the seizure of thousands of white-owned commercial farms for redistribution.
Inflation is at 1 043%. There are acute shortages of hard currency and petrol.
The report found that prison authorities could often not take inmates to court for scheduled bail hearings and trial appearances because they did not have petrol.
According to the report, five of the eight vehicles belonging to the Harare Remand Prison had broken down and could not be repaired due to a shortage of spare parts.
Lack of security at prisons
Few of Zimbabwe's families could afford to pay the bail of more than 200 000 Zimbabwean dollars (about R14), leaving many of the accused to languish in jail, said the report.
Delays in the court system also meant some prisoners remained in custody for more than five years.
Security is also a problem in the prisons, reported the committee. Most perimeter lights were not functioning at the prisons they visited.
Closed circuit television and intercom systems at the country's two maximum security facilities were also not working.
The reported identified at least 41 foreign nationals in Zimbabwean jails.
Some were being held because the government "had no money to deport them to their respective countries".
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