Five prisons in Beijing have introduced closed-circuit television cameras in a bid to improve transparency, according to a news release from the Beijing Prison Administration Bureau quoted in local media.

It is suggested the reform will be expanded to include all the city's prisons in the near future.

All the work in the five prisons, including riot control, disobedience, fights between inmates, meetings between police and prisoners as well as medical care of convicts will be monitored by means of closed-circuit television cameras as of Tuesday, according to reports citing a regulation issued by the Qinghe Branch of the Beijing Prison Administration Bureau.

Under the new initiative, policemen will also be prohibited from taking prisoners to areas without closed-circuit television.

This is the first time the capital's prisons have introduced closed-circuit television systems, according to a Beijing Youth Daily interview with Yang Jie, deputy director of the Qinghe Branch of Beijing Prison Administration Bureau.

"The purpose of the closed-circuit television system in prisons is to make transparent the law enforcement work in prisons, as well as protect the police from any frame-ups," Yang said.

Prison administration officials have received complaints in the past about police officers who have had face-to-face talks with prisoners. The disputes, which have had a negative impact on the image of the prison system, are hard to resolve due to the lack of witnesses, according to Yang.

A special campaign was launched at the beginning of the year to stamp out improper law enforcement, including verbal and physical assaults and the ill-treatment of prisoners.

In cases that severely infringe upon the rights and interests of the prisoners, high-level administrative officials of the prison will be punished.

"The launch of the closed-circuit television system has twin effects. It supervises as well as protects the police. In addition, it provides better protection to convicts, especially in the much-disputed detention houses," Mao Lixin, an associate professor with the Research College for Criminal Jurisprudence at Beijing Normal University, told Beijing News.

In February, a man named Wang Yahui, from Henan province, was taken into custody by local police for alleged burglary offences. He died a couple of days later in a detention house. Local police attributed Wang's death to his drinking hot water during his questioning. However, four policemen were later convicted of extorting confessions by torture.

The unnatural deaths in the country's detention houses and prisons have provoked a public outcry and focused attention on the management of detention houses and prisons.

"The key to solving the regulatory problems and accidents lies in the building-up of the police force and the strengthening of impartial and civilized law enforcement," Yang said.

METRO