“A courageous act” which questions “the entire French prison system”, welcomes a union

“I loved this service and this administration for 27 years: it is with a heavy heart that I leave it,” declared Monday October 7, the director of Majicavo prison, in Mayotte, who resigned. “It’s truly a very strong, very courageous act on his part”greeted Wilfried Fonck, national secretary of Ufap-Unsa Justice, on Tuesday on franceinfo.

In a video broadcast on a local TV site, Nicolas Jauniaux wanted to “attract attention” on the working conditions in this overcrowded establishment, marked by “mutiny with hostage taking” on September 28. The establishment houses 650 inmates for 278 places, a record in France. With his resignation, he hopes “contribute, in its modest way, to improving the working conditions of staff and the living conditions of prisoners”.

“We have a record overpopulation rate where it has become impossible to be able to fulfill our missions,” confirms Wilfried Fonck. But for the national secretary Ufap-Unsa Justice, the resignation of Nicolas Jauniaux “should not focus attention only on Mayotte”. According to the trade unionist, this must “to question” on “the entire French prison system”because “the situation in French prisons today is catastrophic.”

According to the management of the prison administration, the occupancy rate of French prisons on September 1 was 127% on average. But in remand centers, where prisoners awaiting trial and those sentenced to short sentences are incarcerated, it reaches 153.6%. In Majicavo, it exceeds 181%. In France, 3,609 prisoners sleep on the floor, on mattresses.