Villeneuve-les-Maguelones prison, in the south of France.

-

Pascal GUYOT / AFP

A total of 43 inmates over 75 have already been vaccinated in prison against Covid-19, the Chancellery announced on Friday.

French prisons have 204 inmates over 75 years out of 62,673 inmates, according to the latest figures from the Ministry of Justice.

"The prisoners are housed in the same boat as all our fellow citizens"

"They are obviously a priority, as are our fellow citizens over the age of 75," Minister of Justice Eric Dupond-Moretti said on France Info on Friday.

The 43 detainees received their first injection as part of a campaign that began on January 18 and primarily targets inmates over 75 and those with co-morbid factors.

"The detainees are housed in the same boat as all our fellow citizens and they are vaccinated under the same conditions," insisted Eric Dupond-Moretti.

According to the latest figures released Wednesday night for the general population, about 1.6 million people had received at least one dose of the vaccine, and 102,000 both doses.

Contamination in prison

French prisons counted 123 inmates positive for the coronavirus on February 2, including more than half (65) at the Fresnes prison (in the Paris region), the second largest in France with 1,636 inmates.

The proportion of positive detainees "represents 0.2% of the detained population" in the 188 French prisons, insisted Eric Dupond-Moretti.

"We have managed to stabilize it, I hope that we will succeed again thanks to the sanitary measures which have been taken".

The mask is compulsory in prison as soon as an inmate leaves his cell and for any outside person entering the establishment.

The visiting rooms are maintained with an appropriate device, as are the workshops and lessons, often remotely.

The walks are kept in small and single groups, as are the outdoor physical activities, but the sports halls are closed.

Politics

Coronavirus: The controller general of prisons asks for "a specific vaccination strategy" in detention

Society

Prison: The prison population stable with 62,673 inmates on January 1

  • Covid 19

  • Coronavirus

  • Jail

  • Anti-covid vaccine

  • Society

  • Vaccination