Macau Prison (EPM) has been suffering a bed space shortage, as the expected completion time for a new prison is repeatedly being postponed year after year – and now the schedule is still up in the air.
The new facility, located in Ka Ho – which will expand the current prison’s capacity of 1,500 inmates up to over 2,700 – started construction in August 2010, and was initially expected to open last year.
According to EPM’s senior technical consultant Lei Ka Nang, the first of the project’s four stages, originally scheduled for completion two years ago, is now almost finished and undergoing an inspection and verification process.
“We expect to open bidding for the second stage within the first quarter of this year, and finish it within this year. The construction will start immediately, once we finish bidding,” he added.
Construction in the first stage was delayed severely last year, as reflected in the low execution rate of the project’s 2013 budget, which was under 17 percent.
“If it wasn’t [for] that delay, it would be completed this year, but we never know what can occur in construction,” Lei said, adding that the cause of the delay – a problem in laying the foundation – has been solved.
Nevertheless, when asked for the new prison’s completion or inauguration date, or regarding EPM’s requests for a timetable, the officer kept repeating that they wish it to be “as soon as possible” without revealing anything further. The project is being handled by the Land, Public Works and Transport Bureau (DSSOPT).
According to Ng Ioi On, the department head for prison affairs, EPM housed 1,211 convicted and remand prisoners, including 217 women, at the end of last month. This total means an occupation rate of over 80 percent of the beds, which has already reached breaking point for the prison’s living capacity.
Ng explained that rather than simply filling the bed spaces, inmates may need to be separated in different types of cells, under circumstances such as being convicted as felons or having suicidal tendencies.
Besides the shortage of bed space, a shortage of rooms to organize activities and recreation for the inmates is also driving EPM’s desire to move into the yet-to-be completed facility.
Yesterday, the prison’s annual Chinese New Year Party for inmates kicked off at the playground inside the Male Detention Zone. The inmates performed a talent show for guests from the Secretary for Security and media representatives, with acts such as a lion dance and magic tricks. According to Ng Ioi On, the event will span five sessions over three days, so that over 1,200 inmates can participate.
Facing an increasing number of inmates every year, the prison’s shortage of manpower is recognized as a long-standing issue that has not been solved either. “There’s a staff turnover every year, after all there are a lot of opportunities outside [EPM]. We have some 600 positions, but even [if we opened] the recruitment every year, there would remain a number of vacancies to fill,” said the department head.
Illegal re-entry jumps to number-three crime in prison
illegal re-entry into the territory has taken the number three spot in the list of crimes committed by inmates at Macao Prison, according to data released at the end of last year. The crime has newly appeared in the prison’s top ten crimes list, accounting for 8 percent of the total 143 rankings. Meanwhile, among the prisoners’ 31 nationalities, mainland Chinese make up the majority at nearly 42 percent; while those from Macau accounted for 34.4 percent of prisoners.
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