After the discovery ? by the foul smell ? of a dead detainee six days after his death, the prison doesn?t seem to have solved its internal problems? Far from it. Other sad episodes for the administration have added to the list of problems that have been plaguing the central prison during recent months.

Last Tuesday, prison officers released the ?wrong? prisoner. The latter was lucky enough to bear the same surname as the one who was to be released on bail. As prison officers had not checked his identity, he is now flying around somewhere while the real prisoner who had to be released was given his freedom a few hours later. As incongruous as this incident may seem, it is not the most serious one ? or at least the list doesn?t stop there.

Two days later ? on Thursday ? the officers, who must have been told that head counting was a major duty in their job, counted the prisoners after lock-up. And, astonishingly enough, they had? one prisoner more than the expected number within Beau-Bassin prison.

Even if it could sound funny at first sight, this incident shows how lax the measures in prisons are. The prison officers can only guess how such a situation was possible but they do not even have a clue of what really led to such an ironical situation. ?At least we haven?t got one missing,? laughed the commissioner of prisons, Bill Duff. Well, we guess so?

The only certainty we now have concerning our prisons is that they suffer from a real and serious problem. All the recent incidents are there to prove that the whole system needs serious reorganistion. There should be no question of looking for a scapegoat this time; the system itself is being questioned. As former commissioner of prisons, Deepak Bhookhun, explained : ?If Duff leaves, will all these problems be solved? No! The problem is far deeper and has to be tackled as such.?

Today, overcrowded prisons are managed by a reduced number of staff, which has never been given any training or specific skills to do their jobs. The prison officers have never really been given the means to do their duty. Prisons are considered as places where criminals should be punished for their illegal actions without being given any chance of rehabilitation ? which should be one of the main objectives of prisons. Of course, people committing serious offences should be sanctioned but rehabilitation is equally important.

Astonishingly enough, the former commissioner of prisons reveals that the means exist to change the system, to make prisons more efficient. The missing piece in the puzzle seems to be the lack of a real will from the authorities ? not only this government but also all the previous ones. ?Politicians do not have the guts to take action and like to favour repression, which will guarantee them more popularity with their electorate (?). They have to take action concerning the cause of the problems and not the consequences,? he claims.

<I>All the recent incidents are there to prove that thewhole system needs serious reorganisation. There should be no question of looking for a scapegoat at this time, the system itself is being questioned. </I>

And, for him, the main cause is the high number of prisoners. This is what leads to all other problems. And the fact that they feel ignored by the system does not help. As there are too many prisoners, the staff do not have enough time or energy to deal with them. And this ends up in total anarchy as the recent incidents have shown.

?The more prisoners there are, the less time and means officers have for rehabilitation. The staff has a major role to play in in rehabilitation. But an overworked staff can?t lead to a sound management of prisons. So, rehabilitation is nearly inexistent,? explains Deepak Bhookhun.In addition prisoners can afford to have mobile phones and call private radios to give live interventions on air. Likewise, drug trafficking is more and more common within the prisons.

So, the first step towards the amelioration of prison services appears obvious. Some prisoners have to benefit from remission. The system has to become less punitive. For some offences, the law should recommend other sanctions than prison ? community service is just one of the possible alternatives. But all this needs committed leaders who are not afraid to make unpopular decisions?