Whenever you think of penal institutions, what pictures immediately spring to your mind? An impenetrable fortress with razor barbed wire mounted on top of tall unscalable walls? High-security gates and doors? Uncountable motion detecting dome and bullet cameras? Has it never struck you as odd that, though we are made to believe prisons are meant to deter us from committing crimes, we are hardly ever shown their interior, unless of course in a movie or censored documentary setting! Since March 2020, officials have consistently harped the message of keeping our head down, but have you ever wondered whether COVID-19 protocols are observed in prisons? How many prisoners have contracted COVID-19? How many recovered? What percentage succumbed to the virus?
I don’t know about you, but I have heard chilling stories of holding cells. The jury is out on whether they are a true reflection of the atmosphere endured by people prior to being charged and tried in a court of law. Unconvicted people, normally suspects, kept in these temporary detention areas for no more than 48 hours, often share stories that would make you wonder, what happened to humanity! Poorly ventilated and unhygienic filthy rooms, reeking with all sorts of overpowering offending odours. Pungent and nauseous distinctive stench of bodies crying out for a shower, an antiperspirant and a deodorant. And overwhelming urine and faecal foul smell from a toilet that is not secluded. Flimsy, unwashed and stinking blankets that change hands frequently. Add to that the unpalatable language from the hosts who are only too eager to promise their guests some form of torture. If all this is true, you don’t ever want to find yourself in this space. But it could happen. Even worse, you may end up in prison. Resist the temptation to hold the downright quixotic belief that prisons are only for the guilty. Life happens! Privileged rogues can leverage their artificially inflated self-serving power, flex their muscle and humiliate you for decades.
