Inmates threaten to destroy prison if demands are not met
Prisoners at the G4S-run private prison, Mangaung Correctional Centre, in Bloemfontein are threatening to destroy the prison if their demands are not met.
A memorandum signed by more than 100 inmates with their prison numbers and names was submitted to the institution’s management.
In the memorandum, inmates raise issues of unnatural deaths, lack of medical services from doctors, torture at the hands of prison officials and the lack of education, skills and vocational programmes.
According to the Department of the Correctional Services spokesperson Singabakho Nxumalo, most of the allegations contained in the memorandum were previously raised and dealt with.
“It was surprising when the same issues were raised, with the exception of a few recent cases. As per the standard operating procedures, issues brought to the attention of the department must be investigated and dealt with. These issues were also forwarded to the facility as some required the centre to align certain processes and also ensuring that complaints and requests are followed up.”
Nxumalo further added that on the current memorandum, a number of inmates listed as complainants were shocked to learn about their names being on the list as they never submitted anything.
“This came to the fore when investigators engaged with them in order to fully understand their complaints and for the institution to be in a better position to respond. It was clear that someone simply added their names on the memorandum.”
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