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Commissioner of Prisons
<B>Bill DUFF</B>
<B>What was the aim of opening the doors of the central prison to the press?</B>
All I wanted to do when I opened the doors of the prison was to give the opportunity to journalists to fully understand the circumstances in which prison officers are working, which are not always easy. I wanted to give a brief insight into the daily life in prison. It was also an occasion to show some articles intercepted by officers on prisoners.
<B>What sort of objects did you actually find with prisoners? </B>
We found an array of weapons that were confiscated from prisoners: home-made sharp weapons, knives, a large number of mobile phones and chargers as well as contraband food and drinks, including alcohol.
How can you explain that these prohibited objects can still be found in the prisons?</B>
Even in the most safeguarded prisons in the world, there are attempts made by prisoners to smuggle prohibited articles into prisons. Here in Mauritius, we can’t escape this. Of course, we are constantly on our guard to try and prevent such attempts; very often, I must say, we are successful but it is clear that prisoners somehow manage to bring some prohibited articles into prisons. Of course, we keep on doing all we can to try and stop this trend.
There have been a certain number of incidents in prisons these recent weeks (escapes...). Could you say what is the main problem in prisons?</B>
The problems we have in prisons are all related to a question of order and control. We have to ensure that the staff do their job properly and are severe enough towards prisoners. We have to make sure that prison rules are applied properly. If prisoners break these rules, they have to be subject to disciplinary measures and punished for their behaviour. But we also have to implement the tool for remission. Prisoners who are well behaved and work in a constructive way should get a chance of remission. Those prisoners should be released for good behaviour.
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