Mozambique convicts dig for dinner

By Jose Tembe
BBC News, Mozambique

A group of prisoners sing happily as they tend to vegetable patches on a prison farm 80km (50 miles) from Mozambique's capital, Maputo.

They are part of a project launched by the government to get inmates to grow their own food.

Some of the vegetables we are growing are being sold locally to help pay our transport and hospital expenses Prisoner Sergio Matsinhe

At present, the southern African country's prison population is more than 15,000 and most are being kept in overcrowded cells with little or no sanitation.

So it is no surprise that a chance to work in the open air is welcomed.

"The idea is very good and positive," says Sergio Matsinhe, who is serving a three-year sentence for stealing money.

"The more we produce, the better we'll be able to vary and improve our diet. At the moment it consists mainly of beans, rice or stiff porridge," he says.

The Tinonganine Prison farm is a 100-hectare plot where the prisoners are growing potatoes, pumpkins, lettuces and other vegetables.

The vegetables offer the prisoners a more balanced diet

"What's more - some of the vegetables we are growing, like cabbages, are being sold locally to help pay our transport and hospital expenses," says Matsinhe.

Fellow inmate Daniel Muchate, who is serving a three-year jail sentence for burglary, also gives the project the thumbs-up.

"The idea to farm the land is a good one, because when you think of it, it's better for a prisoner to be out on the land producing food than sitting in a cell all day," he says.

"It's a really great opportunity for us. We feel privileged."

Escape?

But the government does not just have the prisoners' welfare on its mind.

Our budget doesn't support the feeding of these persons in a good manner Justice Minister Benvinda Levy

Justice Minister Benvinda Levy says the country cannot afford to feed the large number of inmates in jail.

"Our budget doesn't support the feeding of these persons in a good manner," she says.

"Many of them stay in prison for long periods, just sitting - they don't do anything, but this is not their fault, it is our fault."

Is she not afraid the prisoners might escape?

"We have to take some measures to avoid this - because it could happen, but the prisoners that have been involved, most of them have completed half or two-thirds of their sentence so they don't want to run away.

"If they did, they would lose all the rights that they have now. This is the reason that we're confident on this project."

Prison deaths

Mozambican prison conditions have been criticised by human rights organisations for a long time.

They have documented cases of appalling sanitation and overcrowding.

In 2004, for instance, about 80 inmates who had been crammed into a cell in the northern province of Nampula died of asphyxiation.

And earlier this year, 15 men suffered the same fate in another prison.

Ms Levy accepts there has been a problem.

"When you are sentenced you just lose your liberty, but you don't lose other rights. You have the right to be fed and you have the right to work.

"So this project reminds us that the prisoners are still human beings and they're still with all their rights."

Broadly speaking, the government's decision to get prisoners into agriculture has been welcomed.

The scheme is being rolled out, starting with prisons around the capital and the neighbouring province of Gaza.

Many hope it signals the beginning of a positive action to tackle the many problems facing the country's prisons.

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A selection of the comments received:

This is laudable venture as it will reduce the burden on governments to feed convicted criminals. Lack of food and other amenities constitutes the main reasons for disease and death in many African prisons. Because of the seeming free food that prisoners feed in prison in my country there is usually a notion that some criminals prefer to be there to eat free. That even when freed or time of sentence finishes some will boastfully tell the Warders not to allocate their space as they will be back soon. This could an additional support to food security strides.
Ken Jabbie, Freetown, Sierra Leone

The use of prisoner labour force is controversial it is in fact one of the issues being discussed and causing polemics in the ILO. If in one hand yes it is good that prisoners have something to do is it fair to profit from their work? and where should the profits go to? Many in the world have heard of labour camps and have condemned them in China or in war situations and this is because it can lead to overuse and abuse of power, exploiting human force for free and making profit out of it. Is it fair, that just because one is a prisoner and has their freedom limited to be re-educated later in society, that other rights are misused (choice to choose work and earn profit from your own work)? does the condition of having your liberty reduced allow the state to own the labour force of these people?
simon, Angola

It is great that we are now arriving at a practical, meaningful and humane way of looking at reformation, the rule of law and dept to society. Farm work and any other work for that matter, provides vocational training, physical exercise which is essential for good health, subsidy for their own care and can be extended to the law abiding community that is confronted with poverty and the lack of employment. Prisoners can produce bricks to subsidize the cost of building schools in the villages. Work gives us all a sense of purpose on a daily basis and an opportunity to experience the sense of pride and joy that goes with accomplishing something.
Manuel Raposo, USA

No prisoner should leave the prison without any marketable skills, so growing food may be one form of being responsible. Every prisoner should be allowed to go free earlier than his sentence if he/she can satisfactorily complete any marketable skills. Good move in the right direction.
Chandru Narayan, USA

An excellent scheme. It would never be put into place in America because our prison industry would lobby against it. They make too much money off of feeding prisoners disgustingly low quality, pre-packaged industrial food.
Harry Ezratty, New York, USA

I totally support this move by the Mozambique justice system. Initially, just sitting in a cell does nothing for an individual. However, by farming and in return benefiting from your produce definitely goes a far way. Thumbs up, other countries should follow as well.
Adrian McNeil, Portmore, Jamaica

To my mind prisoners should be occupied to lower the mind tension one faces being imprisoned. It may help to prevent malicious thoughts to come into their heads during mere idleness. Besides a prisoner is being fed and maintained using taxpayers' money, so this burden can be successfully reduced in such a useful kind of way!
Olga, Kazan, Russia

This is a very good idea and i hope other African countries would emulate this theory. However, i would suggest that it should be on large scale , i mean mechanical so as to be profitable, in effect provide some tokens for prisoners for a take off after leaving the prison. No matter how little at least they have something to fall on to start life again instead of going back to crime when there is nothing to do.
Olaseni, Toronto, Canada

The government in Canada is currently in the process of shutting down our country's six prison farms, despite the evidence that they are effective tools of rehabilitation and therapy for convicts, as well as supplementing their diet with healthier food. The farms are considered to be losing money (because the food is consumed by the growers and not sold at market). Its good to hear that other places around the world are using these projects.
Andrew, Kingston, Canada

I believe that this project is very good for the prisoners. Planting crops is very productive to them. They will benefit physically, emotionally and mentally. In fact his is already happening in different parts of the world. It is a very good way to spend their time. It is really good that these prisoners get the chance do use resources to keep them productive. Others are not privileged.
Angella Sia, United Arab Emirates

Countries must copy this Prison farms projects. Good example for the world. Bless.
norma, argentina

This is common practice in Zambia where they've been at it for decades! Prison farms are just about everywhere there's a prison. The prisoners grow all sorts of vegetables, and healthy ones too. Surplus is sold to the public! They also make use of those prisoners nearing the end of their jail terms, to minimise the risk of escape.
Evans, UK

I think it is a wonderful idea but why has it taken so long to be introduced? Prison systems all over the world have had this type of scheme for many many years, however I think UK prisons no longer have the manpower to supervise such practices.
Meirion Underhill, Naples, Italy