No mattresses, poor quality food, insanitary conditions and mosquitoes are part of life in the New Amsterdam Prisons. According to Alan Doe (not his real name) who has served time at the correctional facility the level of frustration among inmates is so high that they are willing to do anything to get out of that “inhumane situation.”
“We need to be treated like humans. We made a mistake but we need to be trained so that when we go out there we could be responsibl[e]… but these people don’t care nothing,” Alan Doe said.
Over the years, prisoners and those who have spent time in Guyana’s jails have complained bitterly about the conditions there.
When contacted, Home Affairs Minister Clement Rohee under whose authority the prison system falls refuted claims that inhumane conditions exist at the Berbice facility. He told Stabroek News that he has never received complaints of this kind from anyone, including the visiting committee.
“Let him complain… I cannot accept someone coming out and saying those things. He will complain!” Minister Rohee said when told that the allegations are being made by a former prisoner.
He said that he does not expect the prisoner to praise “the prisons to the high skies.” This newspaper explained that the man reported that the quality of food is very poor. “Are you believing what this prisoner is saying?” he said before asking if this newspaper had checked the food to verify the prisoner’s story.
“You have to go and check the food!” he insisted.
It was following the recent escape of four high profile prisoners, that Alan Doe contacted this newspaper saying he wanted to share his experiences. He said that it is not only the state of the prison that needs to be addressed but also the actions and attitude of some of the prison officials there.
Alan Doe said that the cells within the prison are poorly ventilated. He explained that a 10×10 cell which is supposed to house three persons houses four. “Just imagine these cell just got one window and people got to do everything in deh,” he said, explaining that each cell does not have a toilet. He said that they have to relieve themselves in containers and have to wait on the warden to come and open the cell before these could be emptied.
“Imagine you deh in deh whole day and night with that smell… it ain’t healthy,” the man said, adding that most prisoners sleep in hammocks while others have to sleep on cardboard or the floor. The man alleged that at the New Amsterdam Prisons there are mattresses but these are not given to the prisoners. Instead they are packed up in a room. He said too that bugs and mosquitoes are a major bother. What compounds the situation, he went on, is the fact that the cells are not sprayed at all. “I know they does get spray because spray has to be provided,” he said.
He told this newspaper of poor medical attention explaining that prisoners are given Panadol 500 for every complaint they go to the medex with. He said that many complaints are lodged with those in charge but they always fall on deaf ears. “They don’t even come to see if people deh comfortable,” the man told Stabroek News.
“I never went to her [the medex]. I prefer to bear meh sickness,” he said, adding that there are some prisoners who are treated very well. The man said that there are many fights in prison which result in injuries, but the majority go unreported. He claimed that a prisoner attempted to commit suicide by drinking Formalin and had to be hospitalized.
‘Horrible food’
He told Stabroek News that the meals given to prisoners “are not even fit for pigs.” He related that one day he was given a pint of porridge (which is the measurement every prisoner gets) with no milk and an inadequate amount of sugar. The man said that this is the usual thing. Then for lunch that day he said he was given what appeared to be peas stew with rice. “I had but 25 black eye floating in wata and deh rice you coulda smell it from ’bout ten feet away. They don’t put no seasoning nothing in de food, is just salt and water,” he complained.
The man alleged too that many nights through the window of his cell he would see persons fetching rations out of the prison compound: “Yuh does wan to know if is a supermarket in hey. They does deh fetching out de ration.”
Alan Doe who had previously spent more than a year at the Mazaruni Prisons before being transferred to Berbice said the conditions there are no different. He said that prisoners wake up at the crack of dawn to tend to the farm but never once are they given any of the produce to eat. “Mazaruni worse man. The food is worse. They got 45 prisoners who does gat to wake up early every morning but all dem greens does deh at de Bartica Stelling,” he said.
“I am guilty of my crime but you got to treat me like human. The prison system turning people into bad people,” he said, adding that there is no rehabilitation programme although this is required. He said that training and proper treatment while in prison are essential to ensure that a prisoner is successfully reintegrated back into society upon his release.
Stabreok News was told of instances where prisoners are not allowed to take a bath, watch television and are kept in their cells for extended periods of time. Alan Doe stressed that they know prison is not a five-star hotel, but they will serve their time and that is punishment enough.
Overcrowded,
understaffed
According to Alan Doe, the New Amsterdam Prison is overcrowded and the number of prison wardens is insufficient.
“They are sending people in there for stupidness and the prison accepting them even though they ain’t got enough space,” he said. The remand section of the prison is overcrowded, he continued, noting that because of being cramped in a small area, there are many fights.
He said this section was built for about 45 and usually holds at least 100 persons. He said that during the day, the remand prisoners are kept in the room. “Yuh don’t get no breeze in there yuh know. De place seal up. No air don’t pass through deh. If a sick break out is everybody gon get it,” he remarked.
He noted that Minister Rohee needs to visit the facility himself to have a first-hand look at what is going on. He emphasized that this needs to be done urgently before “things get outta hand.”
