Seychelles' partying prisoners

The prison is located in a scenic location similar to this one

Party-loving inmates at Long Island Prison in the Seychelles are to be moved following complaints from their neighbours.

They are to be transferred to a high security prison on the main island of Mahe, where the government can monitor them more closely.

Residents of neighbouring Islands have been complaining that inmates occasionally break out from the prison located on a scenic island not just to attend parties, but also to commit crimes.

The new crime wave is said to be threatening tourism which is the mainstay of the island's economy.

"The series of thefts and attacks that have been happening in the last few days can be attributed to them." Gilbert Pool, a special advisor to Seychelles' President Albert Rene told the BBC Network Africa programme.

Mr Pool said claims by local residents that prisoners broke out to attend parties in Mahe "may be true".

"There must have been a lapse of security and management at the prison," he says.

Holiday resort

Long Island is part of a cluster of Islands, and from a distance the prison looks like a holiday resort.

It is part of a scenic marine national park, with the other three neighbouring islands boasting of tourist hotels and up-market guest houses and restaurants.

The prison is located in a scenic location similar to this one

But Mr Pool says that the prisoners have over-stretched the government's patience.

"The government has said that enough is enough and are transferring the more serious prisoners to a high security prison located in the south of the main island of Mahe," he says.

With a population of 85,000, Seychelles markets itself as a safe tourist destination and the rising level of crime has sent the government into a panic.

Mr Pool hopes that it will not have a negative effect on the Islands' economic backbone.

"These incidents have been few and far between....and because we are surrounded by ocean these incidents tend to be over-amplified," he says.