Liberia: Inside Sanniquellie's 'House of Pain'

Sanniquellie Central Prison known among inmates as  ’House of Pain’

 

 

— Inmates decry alleged violations of their human rights, which led to the deaths of three of their colleagues

Even as criminals convicted for violating the rights of others, rights are universal and entitled by all and therefore prisoners may claim their own. But not the case at the Sanniquellie Central Prison in Nimba County, a Daily Observer investigation has revealed.

The investigation into the operations of the correction facility revealed overcrowding, lack of adequate food and the provision of health services as well as inmates’ death.

Some of the inmates, in an interview with the Observer, complained of living in what they described as 'unwholesome' cells, delayed trials, poor and inadequate nutrition, and poor medical care.

“The condition here is deplorable. The first thing is that the prison is congested. There is no good food that is given to us here and there are practically no health services that are provided to us here,” Alexander Kuyon, an inmate, told the Observer.

He narrated that the poor meals and the nonexistent health services, which often lead to the outbreak of diseases, led to the death of three inmates last year. Kuyon, 38, named his deceased colleagues as Peter Toby, Moses Kermue and Morris Kromah.

“Our friends died because of the poor conditions we have here, and any one of us could be the next because it is only God who is taking care of us,” Kuyon said.

Another inmate, Francis Flomo, 29, described the prison center as “House of Pain” and a perpetual and compulsory place of fast and prayer. “We only eat one meal a day and there is no medical treatment provided to us. Being here is like fasting every day because you never get enough to eat. What is given daily is so little that it cannot do anything,” Flomo said.

For his colleague, Darlingboy Tartee, 35, his main problem is beyond the prison walls, despite what he is enduring within. Tartee said his significant other has left him and abandoned his four children with his grandmother in the village. “I am undergoing double punishment, my girlfriend has left me and I am in jail for ten years.”

Thirty three-year-old Martin Kollie reportedly lost his sight while in the prison facility. “I was not blind when I was sentenced but, because of the prison congestion and other related diseases, I am blind today at this young age.”

Kollie, Tartee, Flomo, and Kuyon were part of a group of 22 defendants who were convicted for their involvement in the vandalization of MNG Gold’s facilities in Sayeweh Town, Bong County.

They were among a larger group of 67 persons formally charged on November 5, 2018, by Police in Gbarnga, for multiple crimes including vandalizing and looting MNG-Gold facilities in the aftermath of a vehicle accident that resulted in the death of four persons.

The accident occurred when a Toyota Hilux Pickup belonging to a Chinese firm contracted by MNG Gold ran into a commercial motorcycle, killing the rider and all three passengers.

The Police initially charged the suspects of armed robbery, rioting, arson, burglary, criminal conspiracy, criminal mischief and theft of property.

In November 2019, the 8th Judicial Circuit Court in Sanniquellie, Nimba County convicted the 22 defendants who were transferred from the 9th Judicial Circuit Court in Gbarnga for fear of reprisal.

The Superintendent of the Prison Center, Charles Z. Mahn Sr., agreed that the facility is overcrowded but said this is due to the growing number of people committing crimes daily. He however disagreed that the inmates are not fed well.  “They are well taken care of by the government by the provision of regular meals and medication,” he said. 

“Every day we will receive pre-trial detainees here for different kinds of crimes they committed, so because of that, the number of inmates grows at the prison” Supt. Mahn explained.

He appealed to the Ministry of Justice and other human rights organizations to help construct additional facilities that would accommodate the growing number of inmates.

“If additional prison facilities are built, that would help to ease the congestion problem we are faced with today,” the Sanniquellie Prison Superintendent suggested.

“The huge number of prisoners is also creating a problem of drinking water and sanitation. There is a situation for the prisoners to take turns and go to the restroom,” he added.  He disclosed that the Government of Liberia ensures that there are mattresses for the inmates.

Mahn noted though the center has been striving over the years to ensure that the rights of prisoners, including pre-trial detainees, are protected, it has been hindered by factors such as overcrowding, budgetary and logistical constraints as well as the slow pace of investigation and prosecution leading to prolonged stay in pretrial detention.  

The violations at the Sanniquellie facility contravene the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), a multilateral treaty that commits nations to respect the civil and political rights of individuals, came into force 23 March 1976.

Article 10 of the ICCPR, which Liberia is a signatory to, states that: “All persons deprived of their liberty shall be treated with humanity and with respect for the inherent dignity of the human persons.”

The article also  imposes a requirement of separation of prisoners in pre-trial detention from those already convicted of crimes, as well as a specific obligation to separate accused juvenile prisoners from adults and bring them before trial speedily. There is also a requirement that the focus of prisons should be reform and rehabilitation, not punishment. 

The conditions at the Sanniquellie Prison facility also contravene Article 5 of the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights, which provides that “Every individual shall have the right to the respect of the dignity inherent in a human being and to the recognition of his legal status.”

“Prisoners in Liberia are often perceived and categorized as outcasts,” Aaron Juakollie, a rights advocate, told the Observer.  “Many believe that once you are a prisoner, you automatically become a 'bad egg' in society and you have no rights at all.”

Atty. George Sylvester Mulbah noted that the aims of imprisonment are protection, retribution, deterrence, reformation and vindication but investigations have revealed that the prison services have been neglected more than any other criminal justice agency in this country. 

“For example, most of the prisons were built for the purpose of accommodating a small number of inmates but today there is an increase in prison population,” Atty. Mulbah, who is a former lawmaker of Bong County, said.