[Onthebarricades] Prison revolts, October 2007

[Andy]

*  RUSSIA:  Prison unrest in eastern gulag - youths killed by police
*  RUSSIA:   Abuse accusations spark unrest at St Petersburg prison
*  BAHRAIN:  Prison protest ends in fire
*  EGYPT:  Prison conditions cause revolt
*  BAHRAIN:  Drug clinic inmates protest police invasion
*  PHILIPPINES:  Guards under investigation after revolt

http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5gn4kEQAdNsFHO8WWBAO1JyQOTYawD8SB32MG0

2 Killed in Russian Prison Riot
Oct 17, 2007
MOSCOW (AP) - A revolt at a Russian prison for minors swelled into a mass 
uprising that left two people dead and buildings gutted before guards and 
riot police restored order, officials said Wednesday.
The unrest started late Tuesday when a group of inmates tried to break 
through a fence at the prison in the Sverdlovsk region in the Ural 
Mountains. Guards first fired a warning shot but then fired directly at 
prisoners after coming under attack, said Eduard Petrukhin, deputy director 
of the federal prison service.
One prisoner was killed, and a guard also died in the rampage, he said. 
Thirteen people were injured, including six guards.
More prisoners then joined the uprising, setting several buildings on fire 
and breaking windows. Eventually nearly half the prison's inmates, some 250 
people, took part, Petrukhin said.
The RIA-Novosti news agency quoted regional prison service spokeswoman 
Yelena Tishchenko as saying the prisoner was killed when a guard fired at 
inmates trying to break through the fence. The report did not indicate that 
she mentioned a warning shot or an attack on guards.
Television images showed flames engulfing buildings in the middle of night 
and police in riot gear marching in. The riot lasted about four hours.
Eduard Rossel, governor of the Sverdlovsk region, expressed gratitude to the 
riot police, saying they prevented dangerous prisoners from escaping, 
Channel One television reported.
Twenty prisoners who slipped away in the melee were all tracked down, 
according to TV reports.
Deputy Justice Minister Alexander Savenkov said the uprising had probably 
been planned, because it occurred while women were guarding the compound, 
the Interfax news agency reported.

http://www.russiatoday.ru/news/news/15665

October 17, 2007, 14:15
Three die in juvenile prison riot
Three people have been killed during a riot in a juvenile prison in the 
Russian Urals. Two inmates were shot dead when security guards opened fire 
at a group of prisoners trying to get over a barrier. Also, an officer who 
was on duty died in hospital from injuries.
The riots began late on Tuesday at the correction facility in  Kirovgrad, 
100 kilometers north-west of the regional capital Ekaterinburg. After the 
escape attempt failed almost 300 inmates aged 14 through 18 set several 
buildings on fire.

Special Forces were called in from neighbouring cities.

Local residents say shooting was heard all night long.

Earlier reports suggested inmates had taken control of the facility's 
guardroom where the firearms were kept, but the local Federal Penitentiary 
Service has not confirmed this.

One of the wardens died of wounds from the fighting. Five other prison 
workers and seven inmates were badly injured and hospitalised. The 
Penitentiary Service says this was the most violent riot to occur at this 
prison.

One of the major reasons behind the uprising is thought to objections by the 
young prisoners to being moved to adult facilities.

The fire seriously damaged the area, as well as the headquarters of the 
prison. Teams are now working to clear the debris.

All classes in the prison have been called off. Civilian personnel have been 
asked to stay at home till further notice.


http://www.iht.com/articles/ap/2007/10/16/europe/EU-GEN-Russia-Prison-Riot.php

Report: Inmate at Russian youth prison shot dead during riot

The Associated Press
Published: October 16, 2007

MOSCOW: A guard opened fire on rioting inmates at a prison for minors in 
Russia on Tuesday, killing one inmate amid violence that injured 11 other 
people, the RIA-Novosti news agency reported.
A guard fired at inmates who were trying to get past a barrier at a youth 
prison in the Ural Mountains, RIA-Novosti reported, citing Yelena 
Tishchenko, a spokeswoman for the Sverdlovsk region branch of Russia's 
prison service.
Tishchenko said six employees and five other inmates were injured "during 
restoration of order" at the facility and they were hospitalized, the report 
said. It did not give the ages of inmates killed or injured, and officials 
could not immediately be reached for comment.
Law enforcement authorities had the situation under control about three 
hours after the rioting began, but a fire the inmates set at a building on 
the grounds of the facility was still burning, RIA-Novosti quoted Tishchenko 
as saying.
She denied an initial report that inmates had seized weapons and exchanged 
gunfire with law enforcement agents.

http://newsfromrussia.com/news/russia/16-10-2007/98958-prison_riot-0

Riot breaks out in Russian youth prison
Front page / Russia
10/16/2007 18:01Source: AP ©

Inmates at a prison for minors in Russia excited a riot, setting fire to a 
building and injuring several guards.
Seven employees and six inmates were injured in the riot at the facility in 
the Sverdlovsk region of the Ural Mountains, the ITAR-Tass news agency 
reported, citing the regional branch of Russia's prison agency.


russian prison(www.flickr.com)


Interfax reported that a prison service official, Alexander Sidorov, said 
five employees were injured and that the situation was under control.
Officials denied an initial report that inmates had seized weapons and 
exchanged gunfire with law enforcement agents, ITAR-Tass and Interfax said.


http://www.russiatoday.ru/news/news/16030

October 26, 2007, 4:54
Teenage prisoners riot near Petersburg after reports of abuse
Young prisoners have rioted at a juvenile detention centre near Saint 
Petersburg, burning buildings and clashing with staff and other detainees.
The distubances were sparked by rumours that some inmates had been beaten up 
by prison officers - a claim denied by staff af the facility in the town of 
Metallostroy.

"The teenagers had incorrectly heard that their friends were being assaulted 
and so they started fighting," Aleksey Pavlov, Federal Penitentiary Service 
representative said.

Mr Pavlov said there had been some violence at the prison but that  it was 
quickly brought under control.

"There was minor damage, only one window broken. Fire engines came just in 
case," he said.

Youths set alight watch towers and tried to burn other parts of the prison.

There were no reports of injuries.

The riot comes only a week after disturbances at a juvenile prison in the 
town of Kirovograd in Russia's Sverdlovsk region.

http://www.gulf-daily-news.com/Story.asp?Article=196582&Sn=BNEW&IssueID=30207

Protest sparks police jail blaze
  By REBECCA TORR

MANAMA: At least 15 ambulances were yesterday involved in a rescue operation 
following a blaze when detainees allegedly set fire to mattresses and 
blankets at the Isa Town Police Station.
Forty people were treated for smoke inhalation in the incident which started 
when one of the inmates tried to escape by climbing the boundary wall during 
a smoking break in the outer area of the station and was arrested, said a 
Central Governorate police director.
When the police ordered the inmates to their cells, they resisted but more 
officers joined to force them back into their cells.
The arrested inmate then allegedly inciting fellow detainees to spread 
chaos, who locked the doors from the inside and set fire to blankets and 
mattresses. Eight of those injured were taken to BDF Hospital's Intensive 
Care Unit and the rest to Salmaniya Medical Complex (SMC) for smoke 
inhalation and minor injuries.
Interior Minister Shaikh Rashid bin Abdulla Al Khalifa visited the scene and 
ordered a speedy investigation.

http://news.monstersandcritics.com/middleeast/news/article_1366211.php/Calm_returns_to_Egypts_prisons_after_riot

Middle East News
Calm returns to Egypt's prisons after riot

Oct 17, 2007, 15:14 GMT
Cairo - Calm returned to a prison in southern Egypt on Wednesday after three 
inmates and 10 policemen were injured in a prison riot in protest of poor 
living conditions, security sources said.
A riot broke out in the main prison in the southern province of Qena when 
150 inmates were protesting Monday against conditions in the prison.
Prison authorities deployed a 400-strong security squad to secure the prison 
perimeter and prevent possible inmates' escape, the sources said.
Civil defence forces were also sent in to end the riots and water canons 
used to disperse inmates.
© 2007 dpa - Deutsche Presse-Agentur

http://www.gulf-daily-news.com/Story.asp?Article=196911&Sn=BNEW&IssueID=30210

Drug centre patients protest 'raid'
  By MOHAMMED AL A'ALI

PATIENTS at the Almoayyed Drugs and Alcohol Rehabilitation Centre clashed 
yesterday with police following a surprise inspection.
Police stormed the centre at the Psychiatric Hospital, Salmaniya, acting on 
a tip-off that drugs and weapons were being hidden there.
Twelve patients at the centre protested against what they described as an 
invasion of their privacy.
One of the patients, reportedly traumatised by the raid, attempted to commit 
suicide, they claimed
Some patients were unhappy saying that having admitted themselves as drug 
addicts, they would later be identified by police as potential drug users.
Health Ministry officials claimed that regular inspections were routinely 
carried out where information about drugs and weapons was concerned.
They said a search was carried out by the Interior Ministry in co-ordination 
with the Public Prosecution.
The ministry official said it was a question of protecting patients' safety 
rather invading their privacy.
A 43-year-old patient said he was there voluntarily and had no police 
record, and so his 21-day rehabilitation was private and confidential.
"Now, I am a regular face for the police since they had gathered us all in 
the television room, which means they know who we are.
Another 40-year-old patient said he did not want to stay there anymore for 
fear of being harassed by the police every now and then. "I left my family 
because I want to be clean, but there are people who don't want me to be so. 
"But storming into my room or looking at my face means it jeopardises any 
hope of being clean."

http://www.gmanews.tv/story/65806/Sorsogon-jail-warden-probed-for-riot

Sorsogon jail warden probed for riot
10/25/2007 | 08:30 AM
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The Sorsogon provincial government has ordered an investigation of the 
provincial jail warden for a riot last Tuesday that left a prison guard and 
two others wounded.

Radio dzRH reported Wednesday night that governor Sally Lee ordered 
controversial warden Josephine Lacdang investigated for allegedly firing her 
gun during the incident.

At least two inmates of the Sorsogon Provincial Jail were shot and wounded 
during the riot.

Shot and wounded were Michael Escano and Edgar Tarpolata, who along with 
fellow inmates started the riot at 7 a.m. to protest Lacdang's jail 
management policies.

Lacdang started a dialogue with the inmates when one prisoner allegedly 
threw a bottle at her head. Shards of glass then hit Prison Officer 3 
Florencio Escote.

This prompted hostilities to resume, with Lacdang firing "warning shots." 
The bullets, however, hit Escano and Tarpolata.

At the time, the inmates were protesting alleged lack of privileges, cutoff 
of visiting hours, bad quality of food, and inhumane treatment.

Earlier this year, 39 of the jail's 302 inmates were not served food after 
holding a noise barrage to protest new regulations imposed by Lacdang. - 
GMANews.TV