Get them out of jail
Groups propose reducing number of prison inmates to curb spread of Covid-19
PETALING JAYA: Reducing the number of inmates at prisons has been proposed as a measure the government should take to curb the spread of Covid-19.
The rationale is that with fewer prisoners, social distancing will be less difficult, and therefore the spread of infections can be more easily dealt with.
Two interest groups have proposed that those who have been imprisoned for less serious offences or those awaiting trial be released on bail.
The Prisons Department, which also agrees that overcrowding in prisons is a problem, has suggested that some of the inmates be transferred to national service training camps.
The proposals come amid reports of significant increases in the number of Covid infections in prisons.
Of the 691 new cases reported on Tuesday, 401 were from prisons in Alor Star and Taiping. New outbreaks in prisons across the country had been reported as early as last month.
Senior Minister (Defence) Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob had earlier told the Prisons Department to come up with a new SOP to curb the spread of Covid-19 among inmates.
“The prisoners are placed too close together when they are taken to court. This is one of the causes of the increase in the number of cases in prisons,” he said.
Bar Council president Salim Bashir said prisoners who are at higher risk of being infected should be the first to be released.
“These include the elderly, people with special needs and those with pre-existing health conditions,” he said in a statement yesterday.
He also urged the courts to exercise judicial discretion by taking into consideration the “current challenging situation” when deciding whether to grant bail.
“This is especially relevant for those who cannot afford to post bail and end up being remanded.”
Salim said the courts should consider “alternative sentencing protocols” apart from imprisonment for certain offences.
“The punishment should fit the crime, but keeping people in places of detention in this climate opens up the possibility of an accelerated spread of Covid-19.”
He said it is common knowledge that the coronavirus can spread rapidly in crowded and confined spaces.
“Inmates are kept in packed spaces, making physical distancing almost impossible, creating a hotbed for transmission of the virus,” he added.
Human rights advocate Charles Hector Fernandez said up to 25% of prisoners are those under pre-trial remand.
He said the majority of these “pre-convicted” detainees should be released on reduced bail or personal bond.
Fernandez, who is a coordinator of the rights group Malaysians Against Death Penalty and Torture, said this should be made available especially to those who have not been charged with committing serious crimes.
He described the Prisons Department’s latest move to curb the pandemic as “a failure to learn from the past”.
“A prison community is a closed community that ought to be safe from Covid-19 given that the inmates are in a constant state of ‘quarantine’ from the general population,” he pointed out.
He said the only possibility of infection is through the officers who move in and out daily.
“A standard operating procedure that should have been put in place is a mandatory 14-day quarantine for new inmates.
Prisons Department Director-General Zulkifli Omar said the national service camps that are currently unused can be gazetted as detention centres so that prisoners can be housed there.
He said these camps, if converted into detention centres, can easily hold 2,300 to 2,800 prisoners.
“Inmates whom we can transfer to such camps are those serving sentences under Section 15(1) of the Dangerous Drugs Act,” he said.
Another possible solution is to grant prisoners with less than three months left to serve a release on licence, he added.
“Inmates are kept in packed spaces, making physical distancing almost impossible, creating a hotbed for transmission of the virus,” he added.
Human rights advocate Charles Hector Fernandez said up to 25% of prisoners are those under pre-trial remand.
He said the majority of these “pre-convicted” detainees should be released on reduced bail or personal bond.
Fernandez, who is a coordinator of the rights group Malaysians Against Death Penalty and Torture, said this should be made available especially to those who have not been charged with committing serious crimes.
He described the Prisons Department’s latest move to curb the pandemic as “a failure to learn from the past”.
“A prison community is a closed community that ought to be safe from Covid-19 given that the inmates are in a constant state of ‘quarantine’ from the general population,” he pointed out.
He said the only possibility of infection is through the officers who move in and out daily.
“A standard operating procedure that should have been put in place is a mandatory 14-day quarantine for new inmates. - Sun Daily, 8/10/2020
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