Original Story
Bangkok Post : July 18, 2002
PRISONS
Rampant abuse of rights by warders
Corrections chief lets out the truth
by Nauvarat Suksamran
The Corrections Department has admitted for the first time that the country's prisons
are plagued with human rights violations by warders.
Many complaints had been received alleging a variety of violations by warders,
including torture, extortion and receiving sexual favours from inmates' wives and
daughters, Siwa Saengmanee, the director-general, said yesterday.
Prisoners meted out punishment on behalf of warders, and minor disciplinary
transgressions were often met with violent beatings.
``It is the responsibility of prison officials to turn convicts into valuable
members of society, not ruin their morale by handing out unauthorised punishments,
'' Mr Siva said.
In some cases, even the most basic rights of prisoners were being ignored, especially
lenient treatment during national holidays.
Many warders also accepted bribes for delivering messages or money outside prisons.
The abundance of violations reflected a lack of official punishments within prisons,
the corrections chief said during the launch of a training session aimed at raising
awareness of human rights among prison staff.
The programme, which would be extended to all prisons nationwide, was aimed at
teaching officials how to treat inmates with respect.
`The Corrections Department has only 8,000 employees, so we have to adjust our
working styles accordingly,'' he said.
According to a report by Amnesty International titled ``Widespread Abuses in the
Administration of Justice'', which was filed with the Justice Ministry last month,
many offenders suffered rights violations from their arrests, to their release from
prison.
The report specifically referred to assaults against local and foreign inmates at Lat
Yao Central Prison and the use of shackles at Bang Khwang Prison, as well as
overcrowding and poor living conditions at prisons nationwide.
The problem reflected insufficient budget allocations for the Corrections Department
and related agencies, it said.
Discrimination and the use of violence was also spurred by prison employees'
relatively low salaries.
Mr Siwa also revealed yesterday a record number of prisoners were sitting on death
row after a surge in drug-trafficking convictions.
The latest figures showed 649 prisoners were awaiting execution, including 451
convicted of drug-related crimes.
A total of 140 inmates had been sent to death row over the last four months, the
director-general revealed.
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