French court issues order over inhuman treatment of prisoners

By Al Mayadeen English
Source: Agencies
25 Aug 2023 22:29

According to a French court, France's Perpignan penitentiary regularly violated the rights of inmates.

An inmate stands in his two-person cell near a mattress set for a third inmate at Gradignan prison, near Bordeaux, southwestern France, on October 3, 2022. (AFP)

French reports on Friday revealed that an administrative court in France's southern city of Montpellier has issued a ruling condemning abusive conditions in which detainees in Perpignan prison are held.

According to the ruling, detainees' rights are violated in Perpignan, and the prisoners are subject to ill-treatment by the guards.

Local news agency France Bleu said on Wednesday a recent inspectorate report showed the occupancy rate of the prison is at 280% for men and that over 300 detainees are sharing about 130 beds.

"Some sleep on mattresses on the floor, with no room to move around -- mattresses infested with bed bugs. Mold is visible everywhere, on the walls and in the toilets, which are sometimes clogged," it said.

It further said that some of the cells had broken windows and that the electrical network in the facility was defective. In case of fire, this would pose a serious risk to detainees' lives.

An order issued by the court to state authorities called for dormitories to be repaired and fire threats to be eliminated.

It further launched several probes against prison guards over the ill-treatment of prisoners.