A cellphone found in the possession of an inmate serving a 15-year jail sentence for murder – containing pictures of prison officials as well as communications with them – has cost him dearly as he is now locked up in C-Max Prison, in solitary confinement-like conditions.

Rotondwa Raliphaswa turned to the Gauteng High Court, Pretoria, for an urgent order that he must be removed from this maximum security prison as his rights to humane treatment are being violated.

Raliphaswa was transferred to the C-Max Kgosi Mampuru Prison from the ODI Correctional Services Facility in January this year. This was after prison officials, during a routine raid on the cells, found the phone in his possession.

He was then moved to the C Section of the ODI Correctional Centre and detained in a single cell to allow for further investigation. In light of him having pictures of prison officials on his phone, as well as recordings of conversations with them, it was decided for safety reasons to transfer him to C-Max.

According to correctional services, he has been caught in possession of a cellphone in his cell before. It was also worrisome that he had contact with some of the prison officials, and this posed a serious security threat, the court was told.

Raliphaswa, meanwhile, complained that he has been detained in C-Max since January, enduring conditions of extreme isolation and restricted human contact. These conditions, he said, are causing him severe psychological and physical harm.

He told the court that he is locked in a small cell approximately 2m x 2.3m for at least 23 hours a day, with no windows, no sunlight, and no concept of time. He is not allowed to have a watch or a calendar. The only human interaction he has is when food is pushed through a small latch in his door. He does not see people nor is he able to speak to anyone in a meaningful way.

Correctional services noted that their standard operating procedures stipulate that prisoners are held at C-Max for a maximum of 12 to 18 months before being reintegrated into another prison.

In exceptional circumstances, where it is required for an offender to be incarcerated at C-Max for longer than this, the national commissioner must give the green light.

The department denied that Raliphaswa has been in solitary confinement as the rules provide for segregation and not solitary confinement. It explained that all inmates are accommodated under similar conditions and are all treated the same. They are all allowed limited activities such as exercise, visitation hours, and taking a shower.

The department also objected to Raliphaswa only now launching his urgent application, as he has been there since January.

The court concluded that he has been at C-Max for the past six months, and he gave no explanation as to why he only now turned to court. The court found no new developments since January to warrant urgent intervention.

zelda.venter@inl.co.za

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