DEATH, DISEASE AND ABUSE: PRISON CONDITIONS IN

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 03 MAPUTO 000624 SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 04/07/2019 TAGS: PGOV PHUM PREL SOCI TBIO MZ SUBJECT: DEATH, DISEASE AND ABUSE: PRISON CONDITIONS IN TETE, MOZAMBIQUE REF: MAPUTO 391 MAPUTO 00000624 001.2 OF 003 Classified By: Political/Economic Chief Matt Roth for reasons 1.4 (b an d d) ¶1. (C) SUMMARY: Poloff recently joined representatives from the EU Human Rights group, including Sweden, Portugal, and Norway, on a mission to Tete Province to visit the Provincial Prison and meet with representatives from local authorities, civil society, and the prisoners. Tete Provincial Prison was recently the focus of allegations in a local newspaper, as well as a report by the Human Rights League (LDH) alleging cases of torture in the prison. Upon investigation, poloff confirmed three cases of prisoner abuse, 22 prisoner deaths in the first three months of 2009, serious overcrowding of the prison, poor nutrition and health care for prisoners, and numerous prisoners who appeared to be underage in the general prison population. END SUMMARY. -------------- TECHNICAL TEAM VISITS PRISON -------------- ¶2. (SBU) An EU Technical Team makes regular visits to prisons in Mozambique in order to gauge prison conditions and to facilitate informed dialogue with the Government of Mozambique (GRM) on the conditions in prisons. On April 22 and 23, poloff joined the Technical Team on their visit to a provincial prison in Tete. Tete was chosen because of allegations in a newspaper as well as a report from the LDH, of human rights violations, including torture, in their prison. -------------- PRISON CONDITIONS IN TETE -------------- ¶3. (SBU) According to LDH, the Tete prison is considered one of the best functioning prisons in the country, but in recent years there has been a leadership problem that has adversely affected the functioning of the prison. The Technical Team met with the director, Miguel Ernesto Paulinho, his management team, the nurse in the medical post and the prisoners. The tour of the facility included visiting cells, including the disciplinary cell, and discussion with prisoners, including some that had experienced mistreatment. The atmosphere was open and the prison director was willing to accommodate our requests. We asked permission to take photographs at the prison, but our request was denied by officials. -------------- OVERCROWDING A SERIOUS ISSUE -------------- 
 ¶4. (SBU) The Tete provincial prison was constructed in 1935 with the capacity of 90 prisoners. At the time of our visit, there were 672 prisoners, of which 264 were convicted and 408 were awaiting trial. According to the prison director, the ratio of inmates has remained stable, but prison population growth continues. The total number of prisoners in Tete Province is 1,196, 24 of whom are female. ¶5. (SBU) Overcrowding is a major problem at the facilities. There are 10 cells, each accommodating an average of 10 prisoners sleeping. Consequently, most prisoners sleep in the exposed courtyard. The Technical Team observed only a handful of mattresses and blankets in each cell. There is an open-air mosque where a local Muslim group is allowed to perform prayers. The kitchen consists solely of an outdoor fireplace and is run by the prisoners. There are few, if any, activities for the prisoners in the compound. ¶6. (SBU) The disciplinary cell measures 12' by 24'. The cell's meager windows are located close to the ceiling, allowing very little light. At the time of our visit, we counted 24 (including one naked, disoriented, mentally challenged youngster) prisoners in the cell. There was considerable uncertainty regarding the maximum number of days that could be spent in the disciplinary cell. Representatives for the prison mentioned 45 days, however one of the prisoners in the cell reported he had spent 90 days, and two other prisoners stated that they had been in the cell for 80 days. MAPUTO 00000624 002.2 OF 003 ¶7. (SBU) During the visit, the technical team witnessed suspected cases of prisoners aged less than 16 years (the minimum age for the prison). At least 10 prisoners that we talked with stated that they were 14-15 years old. When one of the prisoners was brought into the prison director's office, he claimed to be 13 years old, but the prison officials stated he was 18 years old. In many cases the prison's reports on these individuals do not contain dates of birth, but merely states the age. Also, we witnessed several cases of mentally challenged prisoners. -------------- NUTRITION AND HEALTH CARE -------------- ¶8. (SBU) According to the Prison Director, 22 prisoners from the Tete provincial prison have died since the beginning of January this year (29 according to LDH); most reportedly from anemia and diseases such as TB, AIDS, cholera, malaria, and dehydration. There is a medical post in the prison at which a nurse is present every day, as well as a prisoner with some basic formation in medicine. A medical doctor from the Tete hospital visits three times a week or upon request. The prison has only one vehicle and does not use local ambulances, which makes transport of seriously ill prisoners a challenge. Finally, any hospital visit has to be authorized personally by the director due to concerns about prisoner escape from custody. ¶9. (SBU) Prisoners are reportedly given two meals a day; however, prisoners in the disciplinary cell stated they only received one. The nutritional value of the food is very limited. Meals mainly consist of rice and beans and seldom contain any protein. An additional problem is that prisoners sell or exchange their rations for other products. As a result, many diseases and deaths at the prison can be attributed to malnutrition- both directly and indirectly due to their weakened resistance against diseases. -------------- REPORTS OF TORTURE -------------- ¶10. (C) The Technical Team tried to verify LDH's March 2009 accounts of torture practiced inside the prison. The LDH had previously met with the administration of the prison and had collected information directly from prisoners who complained about the violent behavior of some guards, specifically mentioning that the officer in charge while the prison director was out of office (after 3 pm and during week-ends), Manuel Alcandra, was responsible for much of the prisoner abuse. According to LDH, prisoners said that they had been beaten with an electric wire, forced to crawl on elbows and knees with their clothing wet and forced to simulate sexual relations with a tire or with other prisoners. Although LDH opted not to identify the prisoners, it did refer to an inmate, Bonzo Titos, who showed bruises on his legs and also to another person who had been hit while visiting a relative in prison. Prisoners also named other inmates who had died in the local hospital, allegedly as a consequence of torture. LDH could not confirm these allegations of death by torture. ¶11. (C) Poloff was able to interview Bonzo Titos who reiterated that he had been beaten with an electric wire by the officer in charge and his team. Another inmate at the prison also told the Technical Team that he had been beaten by the guards. Both showed bruises on their feet and arms and complained of having only received medical treatment from the prison's nurse and not at the hospital. According to the inmates, only Manuel Alcandra and his team had abused prisoners. Their violent behavior had become worse over the last few months, though it had stopped (and the electric wire had disappeared) after the LDH report was released. ¶12. (C) Director Paulino was aware of the LDH report and its denunciations of prisoner torture. He acknowledged that there had been cases of torture in the prison and said there were two ongoing investigations, the first one on disciplinary measures carried out by the prison administration and the second on criminal charges, conducted by the local Attorney General, under the supervision of the Provincial Attorney General. Since both investigations are still ongoing, the guards above mentioned are still on duty. -------------- MAPUTO 00000624 003.2 OF 003 TECHNICAL TEAM REPORT -------------- ¶13. (C) Subsequent to the visit, the Technical Team prepared a report of the trip for their respective missions. After reciting the details of the Tete prison visit, the Technical Team, among other findings, confirmed "three cases of torture carried out by the security officer in charge and his team of prison guards." Although U.S. Embassy- Maputo participated as an international observer in this visit, we did not officially join them in the findings of their report. While poloff did hear allegations of abuse by some prisoners, as well as observe signs of physical abuse, it is questionable whether these observations rose to the level of torture, as defined by U.S. law. As such, we were not a signatory of the final report. -------------- 2008 HUMAN RIGHTS REPORT AND PRISONS -------------- ¶14. (SBU) Following the February 25 Washington rollout of the Human Rights Report (HRR),the Charge held a well-attended press conference on February 27 to announce the rollout of the HRR for Mozambique and highlight improvements in the human rights situation, to include efforts by the Attorney General's office, several noteworthy arrests on charges of corruption, and the 2008 passing of the country's anti-trafficking in persons law; as well as challenges ranging from professionalism of the police, vigilante justice, and constraints on press freedom. Prison conditions were also discussed. In this election year, it was not surprising that on Saturday February 28, Minister of Justice Maria Benvinda Levi held her own press conference to challenge statements in the HRR questioning the relative independence of the judiciary. (Note: Since the release of the HRR, the Minister of Justice has refused to meet with the Charge. End Note) On the following Monday, 15 print media sources reported on the Human Rights Report. The most vociferous public attacks on the HRR again came from Government mouthpiece Paul Fauvet, a stringer for the Mozambican Information Agency (AIM),whose articles were republished in the Government-funded daily, Noticias. Independent media provided a more balanced perspective in the following days, and public discussion on the topic of human rights was noticeably re-energized by this year's HRR release. Subsequently, a series of highly-publicized and tragic deaths of detainees and prisoners in Mozambican police stations and prisons underscored concerns raised in the HRR. -------------- -------------- COMMENT: PRISON OVERCROWDING, MISTREATMENT VERIFIED -------------- -------------- ¶15. (C) The massive overcrowding and lack of basic facilities at Tete Provincial Prison, and prison systems across the country, particularly the inability to isolate sick prisoners from the others, makes the spread of contagious diseases within the prison area difficult to control, contributing to high mortality rates. Although signs of widespread and systematic mistreatment were not found during the visit, individual cases were confirmed. More disturbing were the many underage inmates and numerous prisoner deaths classified under "unknown causes." Tete Provincial Prison and a large number of other detention facilities across the country do not appear to meet the basic requirements for humane detention. Chapman