We are torturing prisoners in our SuperMax…
Prisoners held in solitary confinement for 900 days, report finds
Some Prisoners housed in the Corrections’ Extreme Risk Unit have spent over 900 days in solitary confinement – a breach of international human rights, where the maximum is 15 days.
It is the first time the unit, which was set up in 2019 in the wake of the Christchurch terror attacks, has been inspected by the Office of the Inspectorate.
PERU, at Auckland Prison, houses prisoners considered by Corrections to present a high ongoing level of risk, including some who pose a very high risk of violence and some who are involved in transnational organised crime.
There were currently 13 people being managed in the PERU
…prolonged solitary confinement is considered torture, and the maximum is supposed to be 15 days.
We have locked prisoners up in solitary for 900 days.
We are a casually cruel people in this country and we don’t mind torturing people if it makes us feel good, if you doubt me look at the Royal Inquiry into Historic Abuse of children in State care, we actively tortured children using electricity and had the audacity of claiming that was ‘helping’ wayward Children, when the reality is we were torturing them.
Because we refuse to tax the rich, our underfunded social infrastructure locks people into terrible positions where there is no hope of rehabilitation, only more suffering.
We have been so angered by media coverage of crime that hard right politicians take our anger and use it for ‘get tough win crime’ posturing that only manage to make the situation even more toxic and damaged.
We are a low imagination horizon people fixated on rugby, cow udders and denying alcoholism. I fear we lack the cultural and spiritual maturity to have an adult discussion about crime beyond screaming for public hangings.
900 days? Did someone say kinder, caring Labour Government?
100% We’ve thrown our humanity away to save money for the neoliberal feral pig that’s destroying our society. No contempt meant to real pigs who are sensitive, intelligent and brave. But our pigs are vermin human variety.
Yes Labour the same as the others. You wouldn’t treat a dog like this. If you went in their sane you would come out insane. Why has it taken so long for this inspection to be done. And how can the chief screw say this is okay, on RNZ yesterday.
They have been advertising on TV some Brit programme that sends a few ‘normal’ people into a prison with the most violent prisoners. Now I suspect most of them have serious mental health problems but this will never be sorted out and they should be in a mental health facility.
But in this apppalling society we have created the big ‘do the crime do the time’ mantra rules all.
We’ve got over 9000 prisoners ( I think) and only 13 guys in here. This sets them out as approx 1 in 700 of our inmates. I’d suggest the “extreme risk” the unit name implies is probably pretty accurate.
Keeping them separate is probably the only to keep corrections staff, other prisoners, and maybe even themselves. Whether solitary literally means they have zero contact with other people I don’t know, but if its the only way to manage inmates at this level of risk, so be it.
read the full story on the news sites they have no contact with other people even the staff and never see day light .Some have never left their cells for exercise in fact most have been out for mere minutes .They may well be at the top of the risk plane but if these places were properly staffed that would not be an issue .they are people after all and some of the people in high places are committing horendous crimes against large numbers of society daily by enacting laws that stave kids and make families homeless .
Can’t you get a bigger wish list EwenS? Say, more warders and then less risk. You are easily satisfied. Did you read Martyn’s post? Did you see any similarity to yourself in any of the descriptions?
As usual, they use the ‘terrorism’ excuse to justify this, with the fallback of ‘international organized crime’ (yeah bro, I’m sure there are some regular Pablo Escobar’s locked up in there).
So how many are _actually_ terrorists, besides Tarrant? That guy who stabbed six people certainly isn’t there.
The only other ‘terrorism’ conviction I’m aware of is Niroshan Nawarajan, who played a very funny prank on the US consulate despite having some pretty abhorrent views (supporting the ‘israeli’ puppets of ISIS), and he got five months home D instead of prison because he was clearly mentally unwell.
” We are a low imagination horizon people fixated on rugby, cow udders and denying alcoholism. I fear we lack the cultural and spiritual maturity to have an adult discussion about crime beyond screaming for public hangings.”
You’re undeniably correct @ MB.
I’m reminded of farmers. The smart, rebellious farm kids flee the terminal banality of farming for the bright lights of big cities, I call it the moth mentality. The dull minded ones stay at home, vote national, get pissed and fuck their cousins. Good coin to be had by exploiting ignorance though, aye boys?
Instead of locking poor bastards up alone for 900 days how about instead administering a double does of good E? Urban AO/NZ IS an ugly little shit-hole populated by dull minded sadistic arseholes.
Glancing at your headline….I thought you were reporting livw from the Beehive in which prison gang outlaw Daleen Tana is torturing her inmates The Greens….hahahahahahaha she is!
Martyn – Wow…not good…I wonder what they (the prisoners) did to get into that unit?
Or the risk they pose to the Corrections staff, whom a good working class warrier would care about.
The foods good, the cells are warm, there’s an abundance of good books and subjects to study..
At the risk of being toxically positive; it could always be worse.
So when are you taking your turn
Idea BV. We could build on those things. Enforced meditation on life could show a better way. What about some small projects, character building with certain rewards. Are prisoners still sex-free? Some opportunity to get partners and prisoners together with time in private – not watched like pornography by brutalised authority figures – as an outcome to work towards eh?
If you don’t want to go to prison don’t break the law – and if you don’t agree with the laws in NZ live somewhere else.
Isn’t rocket science.
The SLAM, back again, living wage, eh! minimum wage protection,of debt do as we rule say. Eh! your intellect of turning a key, has come to your intellect, push this button.
Those prisoners in there are probably frickin dangerous. That is why they are in there, and they are a tiny fraction of all inmates.
You could reduce prison populations by executing repeat violent offenders, so they didn’t suffer.
if you ask victims what they want, revenge or rehabilitation? what do you think the answer is. I’m not into revenge porn as most people grow older, mellow and deserve a second chance. however, some do not, have a mental illness and should be permanently sedated. coming to a half-way house near you soon.