It doesn’t take a gifted human to work out that living conditions in Pollsmoor, one of the world’s most infamous prison facilities, are less than stellar. Just ask Ross Kemp, who travelled the globe visiting notorious penal institutions and ranked Cape Town’s as one of the worst in the world.

Now we have all heard the saying ‘innocent until proven guilty’, but what does that mean for those who are awaiting trial in Pollsmoor? Still yet to have their day in court, many are living in squalid conditions. One such prisoner spoke to GroundUp, with the following account carried on The Daily Maverick:

“It is filthy inside here. There is only one toilet for 40 of us so some end up urinating in the shower. This causes a bad smell because we don’t get any cleaning detergents here to clean the shower or the toilet..

The situation is bad here inside. We share single beds and some of us sleep on the floor, there is no area for non-smokers. It is crowded. There are lice and some of the people around us are sick…I don’t eat it because this food is right for pigs not human beings, I just eat the bread that is provided…”

The detainee says he was told that life in the Pollsmoor awaiting trial section is much worse than inside the prison. “I don’t know how but all I know is that we are living like animals in here and there is nothing that we can do about it,”

These allegations have been refuted by the Department of Correctional Services, who say that claims such as these are unfounded and inmates are given regular health checks.

I guess it boils down to who you believe more, government officials or those awaiting trial in prison. You can make your own judgement calls there.

[sources:dailymaverick&groundup]