Prison Reform: Release of only 500 of 11,000 eligible non-violent criminals not sufficient - Nurul Izzah

KUALA LUMPUR: The All-Party Parliamentary Group Malaysia for the Reform Of All Places of Detention (APPGM-RAPD) has called on the government to have a strong mandate to push forward prison reforms using the blueprint that has been prepared by the Prisons Department.

Member of Parliament for Permatang Pauh, Nurul Izzah Anwar said despite the pronouncements and plans to release 11,000 eligible non-violent criminals under the blueprint, only 500 have been released.

“This is hardly sufficient. I’m going to refer to the data we received - we have the capacity to fill up 52,000 prisoners. But as of November 2020, we have 62,000 people in prison. This is not taking into account those who are detained under remand.

“For me, clearly there’s overcrowding. What is more concerning now is the announcement of Minister of Defence about taking in more people for flouting the Movement Control Order (MCO),” she said during an interview on Consider This program on Friday.

Currently, the issue of prisons and other detention centres as incubators of infectious diseases, particularly COVID-19, has caused prison clusters which sometimes accounted for up to 20 per cent of daily new cases.

“The APPGM has written to the Ministry of Home Affairs and the Special Committee for Vaccine Access Guarantee (JKJAV) under MOSTI Minister Khairy Jamaluddin. To date, we’ve only gotten a response from JKJAV.

“JKJAV have taken up our suggestion to include prisoners and wardens to get their vaccines early.

“We also have sent a letter to the King. I believe this is an important issue and furthermore, with the powers accorded to the executives under the emergency, we need to hold them accountable, to move faster,” said Nurul Izzah.

Meanwhile, lawyer Sangeet Kaur Deo who was also interviewed in the same program last night said drug laws for possession, even for use, will send you straight into prison and that is not the answer as it doesn’t solve the issue

She also agrees that prisons in the country are running overcapacity and that prisons needed help.

“That would involve a network of government agencies stepping in to ensure reintegration into the community, which is an essential element in crime prevention,” said Sangeet.