HALF OF INMATES DRUG USERS AND PUSHERS

MORE THAN half of convicts at the Nicosia Central Prisons are drug
users or pushers, the Justice Minister admitted yesterday during a
meeting of the House Legal Affairs Committee.

The Committee met to discuss the possibility of creating a
subcommittee to deal solely with reforming the prison system following
the latest fiasco involving an inmate putting out contracts on
people's lives from his cell.

During the meeting Justice Minister Loucas Louca raised the issue of
drug abuse and distribution in prisons, which he said was rife.

"More than half of all prisoners are drug users or pushers; this is a
fact and we cannot hide it," said Louca. "But we can try and eliminate
this phenomenon. We have some thoughts and have made some progress,
but you understand, we can't refer to these measures publicly, for
obvious reasons."

The Committee - which was also attended by the Police Chief and deputy
Central Prison Director - aims to make the necessary law amendments
that will combat corruption and decay within the prison walls.

The discussion, which was interrupted halfway through to be carried
out behind closed doors, arose following premeditated murder of
Limassol ex cabaret boss Michalakis Kakathymis on July 17.

A chain of events that unrolled after the murder led police
investigations to prisoner Sotiris Athinis, who was jailed for 25
years in 2005 on drugs charges. It then emerged that Attorney-general
Petros Clerides was also on the hit-list.

Police subsequently requested Athinis to be taken out of prison and
put into police custody so he could not interact with other inmates or
contact anyone on the outside and alter evidence.

This raised the alarm further, as the move was perceived by some as
the police force's lack of trust in the prison system, where inmates
appear to be able to get their hands on forbidden mobile phones at the
drop of a hat.

Speaking after yesterday's House meeting, Louca said the phenomenon of
decay and corruption within the prison system could only be handled
successfully with cooperation and good will from all involved bodies,
especially the Justice Ministry, Central Prison and Legal Committee.

"The ministry is concerned about the whole situation and has sped up
procedures to install a mobile deactivation system, which will be
placed in various points in the prisons and will deactivate mobile
telephones; this will be followed by the installation of a permanent,
central deactivation system," said Louca.

Another measure, he added, would be to build special units in the
prison, where high-risk and dangerous inmates could be kept in isolation.

Asked to comment on Athinis' activities from within the prison walls,
Louca said the police had requested his remand, "on suspicion of
committing other serious crimes", and that Athinis was being held by
the police to assist investigations, until they have wrapped up.

In the long-run, the aim is to build new prison establishments, which
will be more modern and better equipped to deal with the security
aspect. The current buildings were built when Cyprus was a British
colony in the 1960s.

Committee Chairman Ionas Nicolaou of DISY said the problem was serious
and needed immediate attention.

Though he admitted he was not surprised, what with drug abuse and
distribution in prisons being a problem that has always existed. "When
I projected the matter a few months ago, it was considered an
exaggeration by the former minister; but it was confirmed three months
later via live link-up between inmates and the television channels,"
said Nicolaou.

The Committee, he added, had listened to the various measures that are
already being taken; but he said a lot more needs to be done.

"This code of silence or misjudged solidarity among prison wardens is
one of the reasons behind some of these problems," said Nicolaou.

He added that his Committee was ready to re-examine the legal
framework under which prisons operate, which was why it suggested the
creation of a subcommittee that can deal solely with the specific issue.

"The subcommittee will examine all the chapters one by one, with the
help of experts," Nicolaou explained.

On behalf of ruling party AKEL, MP Aristophanis Georgiou said he was
in favour of creating the subcommittee, adding that the state seemed
determined to combat these phenomena.

"The reviewed legal framework most include motives and counter-motives
that will make prisoners think twice before committing another crime
or disrespecting the prison's regulations," said Georgiou.