Behind bars in Pakistan

MANY Pakistanis, weary of the violence that has wracked this country in recent years, may not spare much thought for conditions inside the nation’s prisons, or have any sympathy for those who endure them. However, the issue has a significant bearing on the security environment in the country as a whole; in fact, it can even determine the extent to which we can hold on to the tenuous and hard-fought peace we have achieved. It is therefore appropriate that Nacta along with the ICRC and Code Pakistan, a local NGO, has explored the matter in some detail and recommended urgent, short- and long-term reforms. Among their findings, compiled in a recently released report, is that Pakistani prisons are severely overcrowded, housing on average 57pc more inmates than their authorised capacity. Appallingly, eight of these detention facilities have an occupancy rate of 300pc to 500pc more than the official capacity. Another important revelation is that undertrial prisoners comprise 66pc of all those behind bars, over twice the international rate of 27pc.

The shockingly lax security protocols in prisons across the country have already received much attention time and again, often in spectacular ways. There were the jailbreaks in Bannu and Dera Ismail Khan some years ago, for instance, in which militants managed to free over 500 inmates, including many of their own ilk. More recently, two hardcore Lashkar-i-Jhangvi militants, accused of over 60 murders between them, escaped from Karachi’s Central Prison. Investigations revealed not only active collusion on the part of several jail officials in the getaway, but also that high-profile militants — instead of being isolated in their barracks away from the other inmates — were virtually running the prison.

Aside from the obvious health consequences such as the spread of infectious disease, overcrowding in prisons also contributes in many subtle ways to a less secure society. For one, it results in a loss of control over the prisoners — even more so when the latter include dangerous individuals who can easily intimidate prison guards. That precipitates high levels of stress among jail personnel, leading to a situation where they can make critical mistakes, or even cede space to violent criminals. Living in an intolerably confined area also exacerbates tensions and increases the risk of violence among the prison population, a majority of whom have not even been convicted by the courts. The close proximity also makes it easier for hardcore outlaws to influence undertrial prisoners, thereby fuelling an endless cycle of criminality. There are thus several vital reasons why the various aspects of the criminal justice system, including investigation and prosecution, must work together so that trials can be concluded within a reasonable period of time. Aside from this, it is about time that Pakistan discarded the outmoded concept of retributive justice and adopted the more modern, humane path of reformative justice.