PAKISTAN is home to some of the most overcrowded prisons in the world. A report issued by Human Rights Watch in March 2023 revealed a glaring situation, noting that some jail cells, designed for just three people, were holding as many as 15 prisoners. Moreover, financially disadvantaged prisoners are treated like animals, with basic medical facilities often unavailable to them. Besides, women in jails are subjected to gross violence, including verbal and sexual abuse, by male staff.

Additionally, most prisoners were breadwinners and used to be the sole source of survival for their families. After their arrests, their families also meet unfortunate fates, with children getting forced into begging, child labour, drug addiction and other evils. For those who get convicted, one may rationalise the consequences to some extent, but what about the under-trial prisoners (UTPs)? There is no dearth of UTPs in Pakistani prisons.

The overall scenario suggests Pakistani prisons are in an urgent need of drastic and comprehensive measures from the government. Some remedies are crucial, such as restructuring the infrastructure of prisons along modern lines, enacting relevant laws, increasing medical staff in prisons, banning the posting of male staff at women’s jails, and putting in place an effective complaint registration system at jails.

Moreover, there is a need to devise a pragmatic policy to engage prisoners in the labour force. By doing so, a portion of the income can be spent on improving jails, and the remaining revenues can be used to support families in their bid to survive in society. Furthermore, establishing a speedy justice system to avoid pre-conviction detaining as well as introducing academic and vocational training to equip the unskilled are also essential necessities.

As suggested by Will Durant, the great philosopher, we need to move away from the current penal code which is a machinery of punishment and revenge. We should treat criminals as victims of mental disturbance, arrested development or their circumstances. Let us put them not in prisons that are nurseries of crime, but in securely enclosed state farms where steady labour in open-air environment could ensure their physical, emotional and mental health, while accumulating funds to finance their re-entry into civil life.

Zameer Hussain lakho
Qazi Ahmed

Published in Dawn, April 2nd, 2024