KARACHI, March 10: The condition in Karachi Central Prison can not be improved without providing the inmates with facilities, including provision of vans to take the prisoners to courts on due dates, building of additional barracks to provide sufficient space and construction of more washrooms etc.

Brig (retd) A.M. Nasir, chairman of the Governor’s Inspection Team, which had been given the task by the Sindh government to conduct a probe into complaints of corruption and to find out a solution, was informed during his visit to the prison that prisoners whose families could not afford to hire the services of attorneys needed legal support as it was not possible for the human rights organizations to help the prisoners in all the cases.

The inspection team comprised additional secretary to the governor, Capt. Hashim Zaidi; deputy secretary of home department; two representatives of the Army, and four staffer of the Governor’s Inspection Team.

The team found the prison in a pathetic condition. Because of the over- crowding, not only the under-trail prisoners (UTPs) but even in the condemned ward seven prisoners had been lodged in each cell meant for two prisoners, making it impossible for the inmates even to lie on the ground at night and they had to sleep on an alternate basis. Over 100 prisoners were herded together in the unit meant for 60 inmates.

In the barrack for the foreigners, over 200 prisoners, mostly Nigerians, had been lodged who had been living in very poor conditions. One of the Nigerians informed the team that although last year the court had ordered his deportation, but as he could not buy ticket, he had been languishing in the prison since then.

Likewise, for taking the UTPs to courts there are only three vans which could accommodate not more than 150 prisoners while out of over 3,900 UTPs, 600 prisoners needed to be taken to courts on a daily basis for an early trial and adjudication of their cases.

The major source of corruption in the prison was stated to be the process of prisoners’ selection for taking them to the courts for trial and it was reported that the prisoners who wanted to appear on their due dates had to grease the palm of prison officials, sometime paying between Rs100 and Rs200.

The ordeal of the UTPs could easily be comprehended by the fact that one of them told the team members that during the last two years he was taken to the court only twice. On one occasion, he said, his counsel did not appear while on the next date the prosecution side did not turn up. Sometimes either witnesses fail to attend the court or their lawyers did not turn up, making their court appearance meaningless.

Yet another source of corruption has been the prisoners’ meeting with their relatives. Although under the present management, the number of meetings has been increased from one visit in a week to two, but if anyone wanted to pay more than two visits or wanted to see a prisoner after the office hours, he would pay from Rs500 to Rs1000 for the favour.

Brig Nasir said in view of the limited sources the government alone could not bring effective reforms in the prison and the situation called for support from the philanthropists who could at least contribute in providing additional transportation vans for taking prisoners to courts and also could arrange tickets for the foreigners who had completed their terms but awaiting deportation for want of fares.

In the central prison, which has a capacity for 991 inmates, at present 4,829 prisoners are lodged, including 117 condemned prisoners, 658 convicted and over 3,900 UTPs.

Likewise, in the women’s ward, against the capacity of 102, there are 247 prisoners, including 53 children. Out of the total women prisoners only 26 were convicted and the rest were under trial prisoners.

To a question, Brig Nasir said the jail manual, which was enforced in 1894, with a few amendments made after Justice Channa Report, was no more compatible and needed an update to meet the modern day requirements, including TV facility, proper bedding, besides measures should be adopted to inculcate self-esteem among the prisoners.

The team was reportedly informed by the prisoners that at present there were 10 men and six women who had been languishing in the prison despite completion of their terms. They needed tickets to go to their countries. Most of them were foreigners who were arrested at the airport while carrying narcotics. At that time they had valid tickets which expired as the arresting authorities did not feel the need to get the tickets open so that it could be utilized after completion of their sentence.

In reply to another question he said members of the team had gone to visit the prisons in interior of Sindh. He hoped that a report would be compiled and submitted in the third week of the current month.

He appealed to philanthropists and NGOs to come to the rescue of those in need so that after completion of their sentences they could return to their home countries.