Chairperson Anthea Ramulube has voiced her shock at the increasing number of foreign nationals incarcerated within these facilities, with figures indicating that by the end of March 2024, there were 22 612 foreign nationals in prison, including 690 serving life sentences.
Golden Miles Bhudu, the National Spokesperson for the SA Prisoners Organisation for Human Rights highlighted a significant challenge the justice system faces: the lack of collaboration between law enforcement agencies, the judiciary, and correctional services since the end of apartheid. He asserts that this disconnect hampers effective management and oversight, resulting in a system that merely apprehends, charges, and incarcerates individuals without a comprehensive plan for rehabilitation or reintegration into society.
Highlighting the dire conditions, Bhudu noted that prisons, which are designed to accommodate 105 474 inmates, currently house over 156 000. This level of overcrowding raises critical questions about living conditions and the safety of inmates. While these figures are officially reported, Bhudu stresses the need for third-party verification, as the current data may mislead the public about the true state of the prison system.
Ramulube, during committee oversight visits, raised concerns about state patients being wrongfully placed in prisons instead of mental health facilities, echoing Bhudu's views regarding systematic failures in inter-departmental communication.
Bhudu called for a re-evaluation of the justice system, suggesting it ought to focus on transforming penitentiaries into industrial hubs, allowing skilled and unskilled inmates to contribute towards their upkeep and reduce the financial burden on taxpayers. He laments the persistent misallocation of resources meant for rehabilitation, observing that funds are often misappropriated, undermining efforts to modernise and humanise the system.
He concluded with a call for the integration of prisoner organisations into the discussion, encouraging the government to invite these groups to provide actionable insights on improving conditions within SAs correctional facilities.
--ChannelAfrica--
