OUR state might deny there is a prison crisis, but the absence of basic jail amenities, massive overcrowding and lack of rehabilitation facilities, all speak to the need for real reform. When the country’s total prison capacity is estimated at 63,532, none of these challenges are surprising — 98 prisons currently accommodate 78,160 inmates including 48,780 undertrial prisoners and 1,225 juveniles. In effect, the federal ombudsman’s recent recommendations to the Supreme Court suggesting it look to the Higher Education Commission, the Allama Iqbal Open University and other educational institutions to improve education facilities and skill training in prisons come as a welcome change and one that urgently needs implementation. Providing education to the jailed is part of a wider prison reform initiative funded by Unicef in collaboration with the National Commission for Child Rights. Given that most prisons are unfit for human inhabitation, the Supreme Court has taken suo motu notice of worsening jail conditions to push provincial authorities towards instituting reforms. This makes prison renovation, capacity-building of staff and provision of basic hygiene facilities imperative for humane living conditions and lessening violence.

Jails should not be used merely as dumping grounds for those incarcerated. Given that two-thirds of the prison population comprises undertrial inmates, the state must also revamp its probation and parole system. Courts should have deadlines to clear case backlogs; and poor prisoners must be given legal aid. Besides, overcrowding, inadequate training of prison officers, violence and drugs, poor hygiene and lack of purpose all create hardened criminals rather than rehabilitated prisoners. Moreover, convicts in solitary confinement are prone to mental health issues; juveniles, women, and older prisoners are more vulnerable. In the case of KP’s prisons, the National Commission for Human Rights found that 251 mentally ill prisoners incarcerated across 22 prisons were denied treatment in contravention of jail regulations. This NCHR report and others documenting the treatment of juveniles in jail and handicapped convicts (death-row inmates included) are a shameful blot on the state’s human rights record. Reliance on lengthy sentences to tackle crime and terrorism-related offences is not the solution. Reforming the lives of convicts to prepare them for release has longer-term advantages for society. Also, if the government were to offer genuine incentives for released prisoners — such as the prospect of work or further study — it would give reason for people to lead a life without crime.

Published in Dawn, September 24th, 2018