Nepali detainees in declined condition inside prisons: report
10/12/2008 16:27
The Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights in Nepal
(OHCHR-Nepal) said Nepali detainees inside the prisons are in declined
condition.
Situation of prisons has worsened due to the lack of budget
allocated to the Department of Prison Management (PMD) and apparent indifference
of the authorities toward the problems faced by inmates and prison personnel,
said OHCHR-Nepal.
OHCHR-Nepal unveiled the conditions of detention in Nepal's
prisons by organizing photo exhibition "Inside: Prison and the rights of
detainees" yesterday evening to mark 60th International Human Rights Day on Dec.
10.
"The prisons are over crowed and lack the minimum resources needed to
provide inmates with medical care, food, hygiene and other basic items," stated
OHCHR-Nepal report.
Education, rehabilitation programs and work opportunities
are rarely met, said the report.
According to the organizers, the goal of the
exhibition is to create greater awareness amidst stakeholders, authorities,
donors and civil society in Nepal of detention condition in
prisons.
OHCHR-Nepal would like to encourage the government of Nepal to
create a prison service, manned by well-trained professionals, considered as an
important component of the state apparatus and offering career opportunities
within the prison service.
The exhibition is an outcome of a workshop on the
management of prisons and prisoners organized by OHCHR-Nepal and the
International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC).
OHCHR-Nepal and ICRC had
conducted the workshop included personnel from PMD, jailers of the 11 main
prisons in Nepal, members of the police in charge of securing prison facilities
and members of the prison Reform Suggestion Committee in September
2007.
OHCHR-Nepal was established in May 2005 following the signing of an
agreement of cooperation between the OHCHR and the government of
Nepal.
Xinhua
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