A/HRC/16/52/Add.5
minutes. Meals were provided three times a day, biscuits and tea in the morning and rice
and canned fish or meat for lunch and dinner. The insufficient quantity and the poor quality
of the food, as well as the fact that they always received the same meal was one of the
major complaints from detainees. Numerous detainees reported collective punishment for
attempted escapes or violations of the internal rules by a few detainees. The dormitories
were quite clean, and most detainees had mosquito nets, although they did not have
mattresses. The main concerns were the spread of diseases such as cholera, and the lack of
medical care. Some detainees had been allegedly beaten heavily by the Police in Port
Moresby, often by the CID, in the bush after being arrested and before they were taken to
the police station.
Individual cases
Group interview in cell 2
Detainees complained of compound raids as a form of collective punishment if there was an
escape or a strike. The detainees were stripped naked and beaten with any tools available to
the guards, including bush knives, forks and sticks. The last time had occurred two weeks
before the visit of the Special Rapporteur. Homebrewed alcohol had been found and all the
detainees were punished, their belongings were taken and more than 20 guards and off-duty
officers came and beat them.
On 1 May 2010 there had been a police raid, during which detainees were stripped, beaten
and their belongings taken. After the raid, detainees were not allowed to raise complaints.
In September 2009 the detainees had made a petition to the Commissioner of Correctional
Services to visit them as there had been three deaths from illness, and the detainees wanted
the Commissioner to investigate and improve the conditions. However they were punished
with a raid. Tear gas was fired into the cells, the detainees were stripped, had to walk out of
cells and were mocked and beaten by male and female guards. Their belongings were taken
and burnt. On 14 August 2009 there had been another raid. In 2009, eight detainees died of
disease and in 2010, one had died from internal bleeding and one from tuberculosis.
No medical examination was performed on arrival at the prison. Some detainees had bullet
wounds and had not received any treatment. On 10 May 2010, one of the detainees, P.G.,
had died from tuberculosis after seven years in detention. He had been healthy when he
arrived and had lived in the same cell with others. He had only been given the first dose of
medication but not the second one.
David Gonz, aged 36. He has been a remandee for one year but had already spent four
years in detention on separate charges. At the time of his arrest, police came to his house
and burnt it down. He surrendered for his own safety since he thought he would have been
shot otherwise. At Boroko Police Station he was assaulted during the interrogation for more
than four hours. He stayed there for a few weeks and was subsequently taken to Court and
to Bomana. He complains that there are collective punishments, for instance when there is
an escape. The remaining ones are then systematically stripped naked outside, asked to lie
down on the floor, and beaten. On 27 September 2009, 61 inmates escaped from all
compounds, allegedly because some detainees had died of tuberculosis in the cells due to an
outbreak that was not taken care of by the management, and that created panic. At this
occasion, they were stripped naked and beaten by security officers, then locked up for two
months. He also mentioned that two weeks earlier an inmate had died of tuberculosis
because he was not transported to hospital in time to be treated. He also noticed that the
cells are overcrowded and that some inmates have to sleep on the floor. There is also interprisoner violence, and he states that the place is not safe due to fights. Due to the lack of
manpower, vehicles and resources, medical issues are not properly addressed. He
recommends the facility to hire a full-time doctor.
21
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