Prison Christmas traditions adapt as Covid-19 surges
Tough measures in place to curb infections
Thousands of prisoners, many of them hardened criminals, are generally shown some compassion over the festive season by being allowed to enjoy a special Christmas meal prepared by their loved ones.
However, with the surge in Covid-19 infections, prison authorities are this year not allowing any treats to be brought into the correctional services facilities but will instead have special in-house meals prepared.
Previously the department made an exception for Christmas by approving a list of goodies that could be brought for prisoners by their families. However, Pietermaritzburg Management Area Communications officer Sandile Jali says that this year families will not be allowed to do so.
“On Christmas Day, we will prepare a special meal to cater for everyone even for those who might not have that privilege of being visited by family. However, with the second wave of infections there will be no list of goodies allowed into the prison. We cannot take any chances,” explained Jali.
Five correctional centres fall under the Pietermaritzburg Management Area, namely Medium A (New Prison); Medium B in Mayor’s Walk, New Hanover; Ixopo; and, Servontein. 64 inmates have thus far tested positive for Covid-19.
The pandemic has affected prison employees with 128 officials testing positive for the virus and one recorded fatality. He also said three of those cases are still active.
“With those statistics, it is clear we cannot rest on our laurels. We are thankful to God first for his mercy considering that we have almost 5 000 offenders in our facilities and more than 1 000 officials. Our stakeholders also played their part for bearing with us under exceedingly difficult circumstances. We are really thankful for their understanding and the officials who worked diligently in ensuring we curb the spread of this pandemic,” he said.
He said the department has been transparent about its protocols in dealing with the pandemic with head office updating figures daily.
“Following the president’s announcement about the second wave we have updated our procedures – there will be no contact visits allowed and visitors must book their visits at least 48 hours in advance. We have strict screening procedures, sanitizing and masks are compulsory. No mask means no entry,” said Jali.