The inmates and some exconvicts also accused female warders of forcing them to wash their private laundry, including their children's school uniforms, in exchange for cigarettes and fast food. They claimed they were forced to cook for warders, braid their hair and sell illegal items. Refusal led to isolation and assault, they said. The inmates claimed they were slapped and assaulted with batons and fists by female warders. They alleged they were targeted by the officers if they reported any wrongdoing in the facility. Some inmates claimed that rehabilitation programmes, which were meant to correct their behaviour, were not being done properly. The Dispatch spoke to several former inmates and families of serving prisoners after frantic calls were made to the reporting team. Exconvict Marilyn Sharon Yoliswa Faku, from Peffervi I le, is suing the prison and the minister of justice for R4m. The Dispatch has seen the lawyer's letter of demand. Faku, 38, was sentenced to five years' imprisonment for murder in 2022. She said she was assaulted by four warders after she got into an argument with a prisoner friend. "I went to the office and I told them what happened. They forced me to sit down, one pressed me on my thigh so as to not move and I was made to take off my takkies. "They beat me up with a baton," Faku alleged. She said she was carried on the back of another inmate to seek medical help. She was released from prison on a pardon last year. The correctional services department in the province pledged to investigate. "All allegations against the officials are taken seriously and an investigation will be conducted to establish the facts," provincial spokesperson Nobuntu Gantana said. Later the department confirmed it was investigating two assault claims. A former warder, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said the beating of inmates was a norm in the prison. "Women were beaten the time I was there and I'm sure it's still happening now. Warders do it like ... they must beat these women. Mostly they are beaten for having samesex relationships. "They are physically injured. One was beaten until her feet were broken. She was still on trial. It's like a norm and the management is aware." The warder said at least four other inmates were assaulted during her time at the prison. "Sometimes they are beaten with batons, fists, their heads smashed against the wall or poured with water. "It's one of the things that made me stop working there. The inmates are scared to report," she said. The family of a serving inmate alleged she had been denied access to a private optometrist for more than a year. A former inmate from Butterworth, who spoke on condition of anonymity, added more allegations. She said she still got calls from friends inside saying warders were beating them. "They beat inmates like they are ... snakes. "They have a specialised team that does the beating." SA Human Rights Commission chair Chris Nissen said the allegations, if true, were "horrible". "If these allegations are true, then we would certainly have to ask the Judicial Inspectorate of Correctional Services to urgently do an investigation. "It is unacceptable, if it's true, that females be treated like that in a country where we have a huge programme at any level on GBV." Miles Bhudu, of the SA Prisoners Organisation for Human Rights, said: "You got it from the horse's mouth. "I believe each and every word they said and if there's anyone in the department who can deny that, let them come out." Gantana said the East London facility had been visited by the acting regional commissioner of the Eastern Cape on January 28. "Offenders were afforded the opportunity to register any complaints and requests directly with him. "During this visit none of the allegations were registered except for the alleged assault of two inmates. "As a result, an investigation is under way to establish the facts surrounding these assault allegations." She said complaints and requests were taken on a daily basis at the department's facilities. "The centre is also visited by Independent Prison Visitors that deal with offender complaints, among others. "These Independent Prison Visitors are under the jurisdiction of the Judicial Inspectorate for Correctional Services. "The operations and functioning of the inspectorate is totally independent from the department and they report any findings directly to the office of the inspecting judge. "They have free access to all inmates and vice versa."

Source: Daily Dispatch