Tragedy in prison

Although the controversy over last month's death of Tjetje Tadjudin in police custody has not died down, the nation is now shocked by the death of Lambertus Lele Koban at Pondok Bambu Penitentiary in Jakarta. The circumstances of the two deaths are different. All signs suggest that Tjetje died of torture. While there are no such indications in the death of 13-year-old Lambertus, it is nevertheless a tragedy that a youngster died while supposedly under the care of the state.

Preliminary investigations, including an autopsy, say he died of a respiratory problem. His family suspects that the illness was caused by poor facilities at the penitentiary, and has asked a lawyer to explore the possibility of a lawsuit.

Pending the official investigation and the possible court trial, Lambertus' death calls for a review of the condition of our prisons.

There have been many reports about inadequate facilities in the country's prisons. Some were in written form, or related by former inmates. Others we learned of the violent way, such as the mutiny in Tanjung Kusta Prison in Medan last March in which six people were burnt alive by fellow inmates, or the prison riot in Dili, East Timor in January, in which one inmate was killed.

News of prison deaths, violence and mutinies would probably make effective deterrents in an authoritarian state. But Indonesia is not one. In fact, only last year, the House of Representatives enacted an improved law on correctional institutions. The 1995 law states the function of a correctional facility is exactly what the words imply: to correct or reform a person, a process to prepare someone for their return to society. A correctional facility is not, and should not be seen as, a place of punishment.

Those who are sent to correctional facilities are under the care of the state. Whatever befalls the inmates, the state is responsible. The conditions of the prisons, therefore, must meet some basic standards. We are not suggesting that rooms, the sanitation and the food must be like that found in hotels, but they must meet some minimum requirements.

Reports abound about the poor water quality, not only its shortage, in prisons. Some of the illnesses befalling the inmates may have been caused by poor sanitation and water. The reports that some inmates enjoyed hotel-standard facilities -- like the widely publicized case of convicted businessman Edi Tansil, shortly before his escape in May -- have also surfaced now and then, but these are likely to be exceptions to the rule.

There is also the question of the safety of prisoners from possible torture by fellow inmates. The Tanjung Kusta mutiny was a real-life drama of something many of us thought only happened in Hollywood film studios. Then there are the reports of rampant bribery by wardens, such as illegal fees imposed on inmates, and on their relatives during visiting days.

The unannounced visit by a senior official of the National Development Planning Board to the Cipinang Penitentiary yesterday, as reported by Antara, gave him, and the public, some idea about the poor conditions in what is supposed to be one of the country's best-run prisons. But what the planning board official saw in such a short visit was a glimpse of a bigger picture about the sorry state of our prisons. His promise to seek more government funding to improve the conditions is a welcome gesture, but let's hope the government's effort does not stop there.

Lambertus' death, and the mutinies we saw in Medan and Dili this year call into question the overall conditions of our correctional facilities. An independent investigation is certainly merited now. The National Commission on Human Rights could probably take up the initiative.