By Staff Writer
Overcrowding, anxiety and mental stress at the Tanumalala Prison are deep concerns for the Office of the Ombudsman following a COVID 19 assessment visit on the 28 April 2022.
The prison visit was to see how the facility is prepared for COVID 19 and what prevention and control measures are in place.
Overcrowding with some cell blocks not meeting the social distancing requirement was noted.
Anxiety and mental stress of prisoners and staff, delays in handling court cases of some prisoners due to court shutdown showed up.
There was also lack of resources such as testing kits to conduct comprehensive surveillance for all inmates and visitors to the facility.
The Ombudsman Office made 16 recommendations in light of the visit findings for the Ministry of Police and Prison Services (MPPS) to consider, to ensure that the rights of inmates and custodies (as well as staff) continued to be protected and safeguarded given their vulnerability to COVID-19.
Among the recommendations are:
- Addressing the systemic causes of overcrowding in prison including working with the courts and lawyers to hold more bail hearings and seek review of bail conditions especially for those who are likely to spend a longer period in custody awaiting trial;
- Ensure timely communicating of information regarding plans and risks of COVID-19 in a way that is user friendly (including being displayed at cell blocks and entry points) for all inmates;
- Putting in place of a system or mechanism to gather and integrate risk perception of people in prison (especially those most vulnerable including pregnant female inmates, older prisoners and inmates with underlying health conditions as well as young inmates), staff and visitors in planning and message development;
- Continue to provide low-risk social interactions and continued psychosocial support inmates especially young offenders (in accordance with Samoa’s obligations under the Convention on the Rights of the Child) to assist with concerns of anxiety and mental stress;
- Ensuring that instances of discrimination especially against inmates who test positive for the virus are adequately addressed;
- To work closely with the Ministry of Justice and Courts Administration and the Office of the Attorney General to facilitate hearings of inmates whose cases are due for hearing. Alternative methods for conducting non-contact hearings such as video links must be fully utilized.
While the Office’s COVID-19 Assessment was only conducted for the Tanumalala Prison, recommendations apply equally to all three prison facilities managed by the MPPS to ensure consistency in measures applied.
The Juvenile Detention Centre at Olomanu wss underlined where young offenders must be provided with the necessary support in accordance with Samoa’s obligations under the Convention on the Rights of the Child.
Several good practices and measures put in place did receive attention like having in place a comprehensive COVID-19 Response Plan.
Others included having dedicated isolation cell blocks for positive cases, testing for staff when they come in and leave shifts, distribution of sanitizers, soaps and face masks for inmates and staff, granting of temporary release for prisoners who were 55 years and above who have underlying health conditions and early release for inmates who have already served over 50 per cent of their total term with 6 months remaining and for breastfeeding mothers.