A mutiny took place in the prison of Farafangana, a town on the southeast coast of Madagascar. In the middle of the day, inmates rebelled against prison officers at this prison, which is located in the city center and has 357 prisoners. There were 88 escapees, 20 of whom were killed. 39 were finally found after the search by the police. There are still about 20 prisoners on the run.
It was around 12:15 pm, shortly after lunch, that the prisoners attacked the prison officers. “The prisoners were outnumbered and some managed to take the weapon of one of the officers,” said Secretary of State for the Gendarmerie, General Richard Ravalomanana. One guard was injured. The prison had 44 staff, including clerks and registrars, for 357 inmates.
“The mutiny was very well organized,” according to the director of the prison administration of the region Atsimo Atsinanana, Nadège Patricia Razafindrakala. “The prisoners were divided into two groups. Those on the west side attacked the prison guards by throwing stones at them, while those on the east side forced their way through the toilets to escape,” she said.
The escape resulted in a very harsh response from the police. Of the 39 escapees captured, 8 were seriously injured and were taken to hospital. Twenty others were killed. “They succumbed to the fire of the security forces who came as reinforcements because they resisted during the pursuit with the weapon they had stolen and the throwing of stones,” said the Secretary of State for the Gendarmerie. The weapon has since been found, the Justice Ministry said.
The reason for this mutiny has not yet been established. “As in any prison, the inmates are thirsty for freedom, but this is the first time we have seen an escape of this magnitude,” said the director of the regional prison administration. “I don’t know why there was this revolt, but perhaps it has to be said that the situation has been difficult for some time because of the health measures. The rules were stricter than usual to protect inmates from outside contamination. There is, for example, a ban on family visits. I think that this may have had a psychological effect on the detainees. »