Prisoners at Johannesburg's 'Sun City' Medium B prison are going without meals for up to 20 hours because of a lack of staff to serve them, the Gauteng High Court (Johannesburg) has heard. GroundUp reports that the case was brought by 14 inmates who told the court they were served both lunch and supper at 1pm because there was insufficient staff to serve their evening meals.

Their next meal was at breakfast the following day, they said. The Correctional Services Act states that prison meals must be spaced not less than four and a half hours apart, and not more than six and a half, 'except that there may be an interval of not more than 14 hours between the evening meal and breakfast'.

Advocate Marumo Moerane, for the state, said a 2010 Labour Court ruling preventing prison officials from changing shifts had been referred to the Bargaining Council but was yet to be resolved. Budgetary constraints also made it difficult to fill positions, he said.

In an affidavit before court, the Department of Correctional Services said of the 710 approved posts at the prison, only 440 were filled. The court also provided a rare insight into prison conditions, notes GroundUp, with prisoners describing infighting among prisoners, the availability of drugs, inmates lighting fires, and gangsterism, especially at night when only one official per 400-600 inmates was on duty.

Judgment was reserved.

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