New
allegations have surfaced about corruption in Swaziland’s jails. Warders are
reportedly selling drugs to inmates. This comes after a report that warders
also smuggled alcohol into jail for prisoners.
The
latest claim was reported by the Swazi Observer on Thursday (27 July 2017). The newspaper said dagga (marijuana) was
sold at Bhalekane Correctional Centre.
It quoted
a former inmate it called ‘Mkhonta’ who said there was a dagga field close to
the correctional facility and it was easy to get the drug. He said, ‘You can
even get dagga that weighs 5kg if you have the money for it.’
The Observer reported, ‘According to Mkhonta
there is a smoke that fills the Bhalekane facility cells daily produced by the
dagga that is being smoked inside the dorms.
‘“To most
it seems like there is fire being burning from outside, I am sure the first
thought that comes to a passer-by’s mind when they see it, is that the prison
is on fire yet it is from smoking,” he said.’
Correctional
Services spokesperson Superintendent Gugulethu Dlamini told the newspaper it
was impossible for officers to sneak drugs into the facility. She added, ‘Even if the officers can follow the smell of
the dagga being smoked, it can be hard to tell exactly who was smoking.’
The
allegation came only weeks after a report that there had
been a cover-up at Sidwashini women’s jail
where a senior officer had allegedly been illegally supplying alcohol to
inmates.
See also
‘WOMEN’S JAIL BOOZE COVER-UP’
PROBE
INTO ‘INHUMANE’ JAIL CONDITIONS
WARDERS DECRY MARRIED SEX IN PRISONS
