A former pupil convict at Vulamasango,
a school for juvenile offenders in Swaziland, has described it as being like
‘hell on earth’.
The Observer on Saturday newspaper (6 May 2017) in Swaziland reported,
‘While there he has experienced, first hand, brutal deaths, stabbings, tortures
that remain irascible in his memory and is most likely to carry to his final
resting place. In the case of the learner who died in the cells called
dormitories he had been subjected to severe beatings two days earlier and when
he died on the third day his death was dissociated from the beatings.’
The newspaper reported, ‘Corporal
punishment is nothing closer to rehabilitation, says the pupil. Hordes of
warders descend on their victim like a swarm of vultures, beating the daylights
out of their captive as though themselves relieving themselves of their many
stresses. They beat the victim until some even soil and urinate themselves. At
times the uniform is removed to inflict the injuries on bear flesh, adds the
pupil.’
The newspaper did not name
the former pupil.
Vulamasango was until
August 2015 known as Malkerns
Industrial School. In March 2014
an inspection report called Malkerns
Industrial School Students Violence Probe was leaked to the Observer on
Saturday.
The report said warders
at the juvenile jail stripped naked, handcuffed and beat children in their
care. They inserted fingers into girls’ private parts and forced one boy to
drink his own urine. The revelations followed reports in 2013 that warders at
the same juvenile jail assaulted children systematically for more than five
hours.
The Observer reported there was violence at Malkerns Industrial School
on 18 June 2013, when one of the boys fought and stabbed another offender with
a sharpened toothbrush.
The newspaper reported,
‘The aggressor was instantly beaten without a hearing and all boys known to be
his friends were handcuffed and beaten in the still of the night.’
It added, ‘The next morning
all teachers were ordered to conduct a strip search, apparently an order coming
from the commissioner himself who is alleged to have said ‘uma kufanele, isende
lomntwana alibanjwe’ (squeeze their testicles).’
The Observer said the investigation reported there was sporadic use of
force at the juvenile industrial school dormitories, ‘which is protected by the
head-teacher and remains unreported mainly because the administration also
participates in the violence’.
The Observer reported that female correction officers, ‘inserted their
fingers into the girls’ private parts using one glove on all the students,
exposing them to risks of contracting infectious diseases’.
The newspaper also reported
that one child, ‘was beaten such that he urinated and was later forced to drink
his urine.
‘“I drank it because of the
beatings I received,” the boy reportedly said.
Another child said, ‘My
hands and testicles were pressed by the officers who were wearing their boots I
thought they were killing me. My only sin was that they found tattoos on my
body.’
The Observer reported another child said, ‘I was bleeding from the ears
after I was kicked all over the body by the officers.’
This was not the first time
violent behaviour by warders hit the headlines. In 2013 it was reported that
children at the industrial school were systematically assaulted for more than
five hours by warders.
Some of the children were
forced to strip naked for beatings by the officers who used belts, sneakers,
open hands and feet to assault them all over their bodies.
The Swazi News newspaper reported at the time that 15 officers were
involved and more than two thirds of the 430 pupils at the school were
assaulted from 8.30 am until after 2.00 pm, during one day.
One child interviewed by the newspaper said, ‘They were using belts, open hands and an All-Star (sneaker). We were ordered to strip naked before being assaulted all over the body, indiscriminately.’
One child interviewed by the newspaper said, ‘They were using belts, open hands and an All-Star (sneaker). We were ordered to strip naked before being assaulted all over the body, indiscriminately.’
The attack was also
described by another as being worse than police torture known as ‘lishubhu’. Another said, ‘Besi bulawa
(we were being murdered).’
When asked why they were
assaulted, one pupil responded, ‘Watsi lomunye thishela basi faka luvalo (one
of the teachers told us that they were instilling fear).’
The pupils said they did
not report the matter to the police because they feared being victimised.
See also
KIDS WHO COMMIT NO CRIME LOCKED UP
BOY, 12, JAILED FOR INSULTING GRANNY
INNOCENT
BOY, 11, LOCKED UP FOR 10 YEARS
http://swazimedia.blogspot.com/2016/06/innocent-boy-11-locked-up-for-10-years.html
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