Prisons still in dire need of reform_其他_趣味英语-查字典英语网

Prisons still in dire need of reform

One cannot help asking: "How come this phenomenon is tolerated in prisons?"

Lax management is undoubtedly the main reason. What is worse, however, is that wardens in some prisons appoint the most violent prisoners as "group leader" or "meeting convener" to help control other inmates. These designated leaders, often feared and revered as "Big Brother" by fellow prisoners, form gangs in the ward to bully weaker inmates or extort "presents" from them. The wardens turn a blind eye to their behavior.

An even more heinous case was revealed last month. The chief warden in Lingshui detention house in Hainan province took bribes from inmates and allowed some to change wards and extort weaker inmates.

The existence of such phenomena is particularly worrying. If all prisons were like the above-mentioned jails, how could we expect criminals to be reformed and society to become safer? It is not uncommon for released prisoners to become even more lawless than they were before they were imprisoned.

Certainly we have reasons to believe that the phenomenon exists only in a small number of reformatories in our country. But the problem should not be neglected. It is serious enough.

A search of relevant information shows that at least seven years ago, the Ministry of Public Security, the Supreme People's Court and the Supreme People's Procuratorate jointly launched a campaign to "resolutely crack down on prison bullies and maintain order in detention houses".