Packed
like sardines
My Republica, June 1, 2014 02:39 AM
Awful conditions for detainees at DoI custody
KATHMANDU, May 31: Thirty-eight years old Hensh Kelechi could
barely sleep for few hours at night inside a congested cell of the detention
center of Department of Immigration ever since he was moved there last week.
Having served eight years at the central jail after he was arrested for drug
trafficking, Kelechi, who is currently waiting to be deported to Nigeria, has
been forced to sleep in less than five meter place inside the cell infested
with mosquitoes and what not.[break]
Though the detention center is meant to hold up to 20 detainees, including ten
women, 30 people are being held there at the moment.
“I have languishing at this detention center for a week and can see that the
central jail was much better than this. Seriously,” grins Kelechi,
sardonically.
“This place is not enough to accommodate 30 people - no way, and there are lots
of mosquitos, which don´t let me sleep for whole night,” the Nigerian
adds.
He further complains that the authorities could have at least provided food and
blankets to the detainees.
The detention center can accommodate up to 20 people, 10 each in male and
female compartments, but a large number of detainees are kept in the detention
center on a regular basis due to lack of adequate space.
Records show that up to 153 people have been kept at the detention center,
which is far beyond its normal capacity.
“We have a record of holding up to 153 people in the detention center during
Dashain festival last year,” a highly placed source conceded to Republica,
adding, “When there are more than 50 people, the place looks like a shed and
people have to wait for their turn to sleep.”
Salma Laila, who hails from Syria, is very upset with the pathetic state of the
detention center. “I don´t have problem with the size of the cell, but I have
serious issues with this place strewn with filth,” she said. “Hygiene matters
the most but there is no sink inside the detention center and bathroom is also
very very dirty.”
Laila was arrested with her little baby for possessing two passports.
“The bed is too uncomfortable and the condition of the room is very bad for my
baby too,” she cries.
Not just foreign nationals, even Nepalis being held at the detention center are
pretty upset with the conditions there.
Nirmala Nepali feels that the detention center is small to fit even ten people
at a time.
“The place is not that bad for only few people but it is really difficult when
more people are stuffed.”
She informed that many of them have to sleep in a single bed when too many
people are kept in the same cell.
Nepali, 20, who was arrested by immigration officers at the airport for using
fake passport, is in the DoI custody for the past 20 days.
She went to Saudi Arabia to work as a housemaid three years ago. Immigration
officials have completed their interrogation process and have forwarded her
file to the Kathmandu District Court.
Meanwhile, Nirmala cannot but hope and pray that she could leave the place at
the earliest.
But the authorities at the DoI maintain that they do not have a plan to expand
the center as the flow of detainees are not consistent, that there are a very
few detainees at some point, and many more sometimes.
Nevertheless, there are other flaws in the system that needs to be addressed
urgently.
For instance, detainees are forced to stay there in a pathetic condition as the
place is not just cramped, lack basic facilities such as food and blankets, but
also infested with mosquitoes and other bugs.
The authorities also do not screen whether the detainees are medically fit. One
cannot rule out the possibility of some detainees contracting deadly infection
from others as people from different parts of the world are being held
there.
Besides these problems with the cells where the detainees are kept, there is no
proper place for them to deposit their luggage inside the detention
center.
Belongings of the detainees are kept at the DoI office while the detainees are
sent to the center.
“Even at the Department there is no proper locker to keep these luggage and we
have to remain vigilant all the time,” complains one of the security staff at
the DoI, insisting anonymity.
He told Republica that they will be held responsible if detainee´s belongings
get lost. “Hundreds of people come here every day and it is very difficult for
us to guard detainees´ luggage,” the source adds.
´No plan to expand the center´
Sharad Chandra Poudel is Director General of the DoI. He was appointed to the
post one-and- a half year ago. Republica caught up with Poudel in regard to the
pathetic status of their detention center. Excerpts:
What is the capacity of the detention center?
To be honest, the capacity of the detention center is ten persons in each of
the cells meant for men and women. However, we have been keeping up to 25
people in a cell depending upon the number of detainees. We would have upgraded
the size of the detention center if we could know the exact number of detainees
arriving here. But we can´t predict the flow of detainees as the number solely
depends upon the cases related to violation of immigration law. Sometimes,
there are less than ten people at the detention center while at other times
there are many more.
What are the basic facilities that the DoI is providing to the detainees?
Initially this year, the DoI wanted to provide Rs 71 a day, as per the prison
law, to the detainees. But we received a budget of just Rs 300,000, which
wasn´t enough to distribute to all the detainees throughout the year. Hence we
haven´t been able to provide food allowance to the detainees since the last
three months. However, we will request the government to provide us with
sufficient budget this year, so that all detainees, at least, get food
allowance.
Do you have any plan to upgrade the detention center?
As of now we don´t have any plan as such to build or upgrade the detention
center. As I mentioned before, the number of the detainees is not predictable.
So, instead of building a new place we are thinking of optimizing the existing
facilities. And we are aware of the need of providing the detainees with more
facilities in a bid to make their life easier. We will soon come up with more
facilities for them though the center may remain overcrowded at times.
What are the immigration offences?
As per the Immigration Law 2049, the DoI can detain people on the following
reasons:
-For holding fake passport and visa and for not having appropriate arrival and
departure sticker. The Doi can detain both Nepali citizens and foreigners for
investigation if their passports and visas are forged. Likewise, not having
appropriate arrival and departure sticker is considered as violation of
immigration law.
-For overstaying. This applies in case of foreigners. If they are found of
overstaying in Nepal, they will be kept at the DoI custody until they are
deported after completing jail term or penalty slapped by the court.
-Lack of proper documents. This is also applicable only to foreign citizens. If
they are caught without identification documents such as passport, and working
without a work permit paper, they will be brought to the DoI detention center
for investigation.
