of the inmates in the cells. Of the two cells, one was reserved for men, and the other for women with toilets in the yard for detainees. Because the harvest of crops was on progress he explained, criminality was low: many people were engaged on farms. It is after this season that the unemployed flock to towns to look for work and when they are unsuccessful, they turn to criminality. There were, therefore, only two people in the cells. Before going to see the cells, the officer-in-charge tried to call his superiors to ascertain if permission had been granted for my visit. He maintained that he must have clearance from his Regional Director for the visit, a probable measure of how faithful he is to rules and regulations. The comments which have been made about the front side of cell which have grille apply here. Equally, detainees are fed by their relatives. Those who have none, depend on the generosity of the police because there is no budgetary allocation for this item, as well as for health. Discussion with Inmates In course of the visit, a third suspect was admitted into custody. One inmate had nothing to complain about: he had been taken into custody the previous day and with the money he had, the policemen bought him what he needed. The second inmate's problem was his inability to pay his debt. The third had relatives in Bamako, but they were not aware of his changed circumstances. None of them complained about being beaten by the Police. A detainee, who had been in custody for 9 days, I was informed, was released in the morning of my visit. They were not permitted to use the toilet in the yard: a bucket in the cell satisfied the necessity. In place of toilet roll, water was used. Towards the end of the visit, the Commissar for the station came, and he expressed no objection to the visit. First Arrondissement Commissariat, Kayes - 5th December Commissar, Abdoulay Coulibaly welcomed me to the station. I.Hehe Principal assured me that he adhered strictly to the regulations on detention. The Of the two cells, one was reserved for women, and the other for men, but neither had any inmate. On a tour, both cells were round to be airy, but the concern for mosquito nets applies here also. A third cell for dangerous or hardened criminals was also unoccupied. All the 3 cells were very clean. The Commissar repeated an earlier observation about harvest and low criminality. Policemen bought mats for prisoners. Territorial Brigade, Kayes - 5 December ccording to the Brigade Commander, Idias Imick the Gendarmerie is both civilian and military but the main function of the territorial brigade is it acting as judicial police. They work under the orders of magistrates, and ascertain the evidence against accused persons. The Commandant monitors detention by the police. Mali has chosen to live under the Rule of Law and confessions are no longer extracted from suspects. The one cell at the Brigade for hardened prisoners did not have any inmate. Special Police, Kayes, Saturday 5 December rancois Justin Kah, Principal Commissar indicated that the Special Police was responsible for security in trains. Kayes is close to the border post at F Diboly but trains go as far as Dakar. The police premises were constructed in 1927. The offence for which most suspects brought to the station are accused of is failure to pay fare (filouterie des transports) or pick-pocketing at the train station. Drugs are also becoming a problem. The Commissar would release detainees who were prepared to pay the fare, but in default they were arraigned before the court. Apart from concentrating on offences connected with railways and trains, they carry out the normal police functions. The cell was very dingy although like the others, it had iron bars on the front side. Two inmates in the cell stated that they had been taken into custody earlier in the day for not having train tickets. While they had not been maltreated, they had had very little food. maximum period of detention is 48 hours. Extension of up to 24 hours may be granted by the Prosecutor of the Republic. The Prison Service used to provide food for detainees. Currently relatives feed them. Force was also not being used against detainees. In his three months at post, he had not seen any case of involuntary confession. 38 39