Oukacha Prison Officials Deny Allegations of Inhumane Conditions

The General Delegation for Prison Administration issued a press release in response to the criticism of certain media against the conditions of detention and visits of prisoners within the Oukacha prison.

According to the press release, relayed by Huffpost, the prisoners’ food is "supervised by a specialized private company and subject to daily control by the Doctor, the Director and the Economist of the prison, who ensure to control the quantity and quality of meals and their compliance with the criteria announced in the specifications".

The allegations related to the degrading treatments suffered by the detainees during the visit of the prison groceries are unfounded, according to the Delegation which stresses that the 9 kiosks of the establishment are open "5 days a week according to the day of the visit of each prisoner, which allows all the detainees to easily benefit from [their] services".

Regarding the allegedly high prices of food products, the Delegation took care to point out that the information is "false and devoid of any foundation", specifying that the "store of the establishment offers products and goods at the same price as on the public market".

In addition, a staff of civil servants is mobilized to organize the visits of the families, by adopting a special schedule which makes it possible to avoid the congestion and the long waiting lists of the visitors.