A prison (illustration) - KONRAD K./SIPA

  • A mutiny broke out on Sunday evening around 5 p.m. at the Uzerche detention center in Corrèze.
  • While during the Covid-19 epidemic, visits to visiting rooms were suspended, more than 200 prisoners out of 540 protested by going up on the roofs, or by ransacking the cells and setting fire to mattresses.
  • This Monday morning, two prison buildings are "unusable" and more than 300 prisoners are transferred to other prisons in New Aquitaine.

Over 200 angry prisoners out of 540 detainees. A major movement occurred Sunday evening at the Uzerche detention center in Corrèze. 20 Minutes takes stock of this “mutiny” which, according to the prison union Force Ouvrière (SNP-FO), “will remain one of the most important” collective protest movements among those who have been swarming in prisons since the start of the coronavirus epidemic.

Why did the inmates of the Uzerche detention center rebel?

As a result of the general confinement of the French population, the suspension of visiting rooms for families visiting detainees was announced on Tuesday. Incidents have broken out in several penal establishments, notably in Grasse (Alpes-Maritimes) or, this Sunday, in Uzerche. According to several sources familiar with the matter, the detainees wanted to protest this restriction measure. "They certainly rebounded on these restrictive measures, but a call for mutiny was launched Sunday on Snapchat and honestly, this movement will remain one of the most important, Uzerche is the center most affected", notes Raphaël Jolin, of SNP -FO.

The prison administration has counted since Tuesday "about thirty collective movements", of which "24-25 were limited to refusals to reintegrate" the cells at the scheduled time after walks in the prison yards.

What exactly happened?

The "mutiny" started shortly after 5 p.m. at the time of the walk. "There were a lot of people outside, around forty inmates climbed on the roofs, then others quickly joined the ranks, some set fire to mattresses, details in 20 Minutes Raphaël Jolin. People on the roof almost reached the exit but were repelled with gum bumps. "The interventions of a regional intervention and security team (Eris) and a squadron from Limoges" were necessary to restore calm "around one in the morning, explained during a press point the prefect Fabienne Buccio.

🔴 URGENT: #Prison of # Uzerche. The situation is particularly tense. Violent #MUTINERIE in progress. At least 40 # detained on rooftops. 100 outside. A building was evacuated by personnel. He was taken by the inmates. More information to follow. pic.twitter.com/TBhYZh39hR

- SNPFO (@SNPFO_PS) March 22, 2020

The SNP-FO specifies that several detainees were hospitalized after being suffocated following a fire. For its part, the prefecture indicates that more than 200 cells or beds have been degraded, ransacked or burned and are "unusable". “Two complete buildings are demolished, they cannot be used. We no longer have a computer. It is carnage, says Raphaël Jolin, adding that the staff of the detention center no longer had any means of surveillance today: “There is water everywhere, more light, more means of control. Everything is dead. According to several concordant sources, more than 300 detainees are "in the process of being returned to the other centers of New Aquitaine".

What does the prison administration plan to do?

In the midst of the Covid-19 epidemic, the number of prison staff being reduced, the management of the prison administration (DAP) said that its response would be "firm" in the face of violence and damage. In addition to criminal prosecutions and disciplinary sanctions, "prisoners who participate in collective movements will not benefit from the exceptional measures" on which the Ministry of Justice is working to reduce the prison population, insisted the DAP.

Called for several days to release “massively” and “urgently” detainees in order to avoid a health and security crisis in the closed door of the detention, the Keeper of the Seals Nicole Belloubet, for her part, opened the way early release of sick prisoners and others at the end of their sentence. The Minister also instructed not to carry out the short prison terms so as not to put new people in prison. This Monday will also come into force the measures compensating for the suspension of the visiting rooms: free television for all prisoners, telephone rate and financial aid for the most deprived.

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