The mother of a Taiping Prison inmate is concerned about the safety of her son, following alleged brutality against detainees by prison staff at the facility last month.
Speaking to Twentytwo13 on condition of anonymity, the inmate’s mother claimed her son was one of the victims whom prison wardens beat up on Jan 17.
The incident is said to have resulted in the death of a 62-year-old fellow inmate, Gan Chin Eng.
“My son was hit using a cota (baton) during the incident. He could not defend himself as his face was covered with a T-shirt. His hands were also handcuffed during the ordeal,” the mother alleged.
“He was bleeding … there were more than two wardens who had beaten him up.”
The mother said her son, who had been remanded in the facility for more than two years, was not taken to hospital for his injuries but instead received several stitches on his head at Taiping Prison.
She said this was the first time her son, who is awaiting trial for a drug-related offence, had spoken to her about being injured by prison staff.
She was informed by her son that prison staff were not happy following a request by inmates to be placed elsewhere instead of a designated area, as they did not feel safe.
“They (the prison staff) were not happy, and the inmates were later given one minute to disperse. But my son was unable to leave in time, and he and many others were beaten up,” she said.
“Gan was one of the casualties in the incident. I was informed by my son there were some 100 inmates and 60 wardens involved in the incident.”
Gan’s 19-year-old son from Penang visited Twentytwo13’s office in Kuala Lumpur earlier this week. Still reeling from the loss of his father, he said his family was baffled as to why investigations into his father’s death were taking such a long time to complete.
Gan’s son also filed an official complaint with the Human Rights Commission of Malaysia (Suhakam) on Feb 17, urging it to launch a probe into his father’s death.
There were earlier claims that the inmates refused to be placed in the designated area as it was infested with snakes and centipedes.
On Jan 27, United Rights of Malaysian Party (Urimai) claimed that over 100 detainees at Taiping Prison, the majority of whom had been transferred from Batu Gajah correctional facility, had been beaten up by more than 60 prison wardens. The incident, according to Urimai chairman P. Ramasamy, led to Gan’s death.
“We were made to understand that the incident started after one detainee asked a warden if he could be moved to another place,” Ramasamy said.
“The detainees were later tear-gassed. Batons were used to hit them,” Ramasamy had claimed.
The mother of the Taiping Prison detainee told Twentytwo13 she was unable to meet her son after the Jan 17 incident.
“It was only last week that families were allowed to meet their loved ones,” she said.
“Following the Jan 17 incident, I was informed by the prison authorities that no visits were allowed as the detainees were under quarantine.
“Initially, I thought there were inmates who were sick, and this was why I was denied visiting my son. But soon, we started hearing news that the inmates at Taiping Prison had been beaten up, and I was angry to learn what had happened.”
She told Twentytwo13 that the reason she was speaking up was because she was worried about the safety of her son.
“My son and many others at Taiping Prison are awaiting their trial dates in court. They have not been found guilty. Why is there a need to beat up, injure, and even cause death to these remand inmates?” she asked.
“Right now, I am more concerned about the prison staff (and what they can do) compared to the other inmates,” the mother said.
“As a mother, how can we be sure our loved ones will be safe, especially after what has happened?” she said.
She also confirmed with Twentytwo13 that police had recorded her son’s statement.
