New Zealand’s over-crowded and volatile prisons are preparing for violence after the government announced it would put in place a smoking ban from July 2011.
The country’s 8,500 prisoners have already endured ‘double bunking’ - sharing single cells - reduced visiting hours and less time out of their cells.
But the decision to follow the US, Canada and Australia by taking their snout away has already led to threats of violence on prison guards and an increased risk of riots.
A former prisoner said a shortage of cigarettes is already causing fights among inmates, with those without access to ‘smokes’ attacking those who did.
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Cigarette prices have gone up while prison wages have gone down, putting cigarettes out of the reach of three quarters of inmates, claimed the man who has just been released from Rangipo Pirson in the North Island.
“The government better have a lot of patches,” said the man, who could not be named.
“They’ve caused fights already. Even just for a cigarette paper guys are at each other,” the 41- year-old, jailed for his 11th drink driving conviction, told the New Zealand Herald.
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Another prisoner, named as Jason, said guards who smoked would be in danger from desperate inmates wanting a hit of nicotine.
“I can see a lot of standovers,” he said. “the prison guards who still smoke, they better watch out because some of the inmates might react.”
Corrections Minister Judith Collins defended the ban, citing health and safety dangers to prison staff from second-hand smoke.
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“Why is it that every other workplace can be smoke-free except for Corrections?” she said. “This is a prison - it’s not a home.”
Prisoners will also be forbidden from using cigarette lighters and matches, which the Corrections Department said could be used to melt plastic into which blades can be embedded.
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But prison officials joined prisoners in warning of violence. Corrections Association president Beven Hanlon warned that prison staff who smoked would be in danger from desperate nicotine addicts.
“Not just prisoners who get frustrated at smelling fresh smoke on you and just lash out, but because you are introducing an item that is suddenly a high-priority contraband item,” he said..
“The prisoners will do anything to get hold of it.”
He said staff from around the country had called him to report prisoners saying: “If you guys are going to get rid of smoking, you are going to get the bash. We’ll just take it out on you.”
Mr Hanlon said cigarettes were a useful tool to help control prisoners’ behaviour. Inmates going cold turkey from drugs or alcohol when they were first imprisoned also depended on cigarettes as a replacement, he said.
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“I’d be suirprised if (inmates) don’t take some collective action,” he watned. “It’s not unusual for prison systems to cut back n everything and finally have a riot.”
Prisoners will get nicotine patches t help wean them off cigarettes before the ban comes into force next year but prisoners and staff said these were likely to have little effect.
“They just want their cigarettes,” said former prisoner Jason.
Former prison manager Celia Lashlie told reporters: “We’re on the verge of some major incidents anway - we can’t keep screwing the system down in the way that we’re doing and not expect that something will blow.”
New Zealand has the second highest rate of imprisonment among western countries, after the US. the majority of the prison population is made up of Maoris and Pacific Islanders, amongst whom there is already tension.
Last year concern about over-crowding became so great that the government considererd asking prisoners to build their own cells out of shipping containers .