A fire in a prison in the Eastern Province earlier this month, later deemed to be an act of arson, has opened the door for discussion on the state of Saudi prisons. This Arab News article gives details…

Crowded Prisons Rouse Concern in Shoura Council

RIYADH, 13 May 2008 — At their regular weekly meeting on Sunday, members of the Shoura Council expressed concern at crowding in Saudi prisons with some calling for building additional facilities or sending foreign inmates home to complete their sentences.

The condition of prisons in the Kingdom came under fire during the discussion of a report presented by the council’s Security Affairs Committee on incentives offered to inmates of juvenile detention centers, Al-Watan daily said yesterday.

There are currently 44,600 inmates in 104 jails across the Kingdom, said Bandar Al-Hajjar, a council member and chairman of the National Society for Human Rights. “Jeddah’s Briman jail, which has a capacity of 3,700 prisoners, is holding 9,300 inmates,” he said, adding that about 32,000 or 71 percent of the total number of prisoners are non-Saudis.

While some members suggested opening new jails to solve the problem, Maj. Gen. Ibrahim Maiman said that non-Saudi prisoners should be sent to home to complete their terms. He added that the Kingdom’s prisoner exchange agreement with other Arab countries should be immediately implemented.

“The reluctance by some Arab countries to accept their citizens in our prisons is a significant factor that has led to crowding in Saudi prisons,” said Maiman.
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