Deaths in Detention

Posted on 19 June 2009.

China's police are now coming to the end of a three-month campaign to eliminate the "unnatural deaths" of inmates in detention centres.

In the first few months of 2009, there were at least fifteen suspicious deaths of prisoners in police custody. In one case, police in Yunnan province claimed that an inmate was beaten to death by other prisoners during a game of hide-and-seek. Another inmate died "after having a nightmare".

"The Ministry of Justice, which operates prisons, has proposed that the management of detention centres be taken away from the Ministry of Public Security, on the grounds that police allow bullying by favoured prisoners and are inclined to torture prisoners to extract confessions," Reuters reported.

Senior judges and prosecutors have recently inspected some of the nearly 3,000 detention centres where criminal suspects are held. Local authorities have been urged to educate police officers to boost ethics, awareness of the law and respect for human rights. "Officials should bravely reveal problems in the management of prisons and detention centres, and should redouble efforts to address them," the Ministry of Justice has said.

Thank the Lord for this public recognition that all is not right in China's detention centres. Pray that it might lead to a real turnaround whereby bullying, torture and other illegal behaviour are no longer tolerated.

Pray for the success of the three-month campaign. Pray for an end to "unnatural deaths" of prisoners in police custody.

Pray that those who speak out to reveal problems in the management of detention centres would be protected from any backlash and that sincere efforts would be made to address such issues.