Prisons in Themiclesia
Prisons in Themiclesia have existed for at least two millennia. Modern prisons form part of the nation's correctional facilities, which also includes young offenders detention facilities and ordinary detention facilities. Most prisons fall under provincial jurisdictions, except for the Coast Guard prisons and certain military prisons.
As of 2017, there are currently 233 prisons, housing 33,550 prisoners under incarceration sentences. The average prison has 180 cells, houses 143 prisoners, and has a staff of 53. The prison system is administered under the Prisons Act of 1840, which has been amended many times since enactment.
History
There is little historical information about prisons in Antiquity other than that they did not exist as places where convicted prisoners spend time as punishment for their crimes. Early Themiclesian law does not seem to have employed mere incarceration as a punishment in se. Other than mutilation or execution, criminals faced slavery along with their families, which was a hereditary condition. In the key transition of the 3rd century, the role of the king in judicial proceedings evolved from arbiter to legislator, and with this transition a great deal of laws and punishments appeared.
The early prisons, there being a number of archaeological sites thus characterized, are assumed to be spaces to hold suspects before trial, or the convicted before a punishment is carried out. In a broader sense, many royal palaces contained areas associated with forced labour, replenished by criminals reduced to slaves. These areas contained living quarters and work sites designed around a heavily confined labour source, though slaves often did reside in family groups where not naturally impossible.
In 3rd century, the establishment of administration away from the capital city is associated with the building of prison complexes attached to centres of administration and royal workshops of all sorts. These areas are, however, often difficult to distinguish, but their existence is informed by both received and excavated documents. It is usually held that these prisons attached to administrative structures are for temporary detention, as incarceration sentences had not appeared yet. In a proclamation of 284, the Tsinh ruler exhorted his viceroys and magistrates to "clear prisoners" regularly, implying that excessively long detentions before trial or punishment should be avoided. Prolonged detentions is a common accusation of misgovernment by a magistrate or viceroy.
Temporary, rather than permanent, loss of liberty is first attested firmly in Themiclesia in the code of 557, enacted under the instigation of the second Meng emperor. It should be construed that this incarceration was most probably considered a by-product of forced labour and not construed as a punishment in se. Indeed, the name for this punishment (作, dzak) literally means "work". The longest sentence of this time was eleven years.
Conditions
As prison inmates were considered part-way forced labourers until the 19th century, their accommodation was considered a service to them rather than something to which they were entitled for shelter. Indeed, merely being lodged at the prison carried a per diem fee, which was virtually paid off by performing work (for those imprisoned for debt, the usual rate was that 1/8 or 1/6 of a day's work paid for the virtual "rent" and did not count towards the debt). According to standard arrangements that appear to have scarcely changed for centuries, prisoners lived in large walled-off compounds while not working; the shelter for them was the roofed arcade that lined the compound.
Such architecture raised concerns with the humanistic authors, who argued that the power to govern came with a duty to ensure a certain responsibility of security. Issues of the day included prisoners dying of frost in winter, infectious diseases, and floods, moving such influential individuals to encourage Parliament to provide "secure and humane" accommodation for prisoners who have no control whatever over their environment or ability to improve it according to their ability. For the most part, these calls, appearing in the 1700s, were not in the mainstream until the cholera epidemic of 1837, which killed 1 in 20 residents of Kien-k'ang but resulted in over 2/3 mortality at the Kiwrang-leqs (龏寺) Prison, including several reformist writers in prison for debt and a cherished singer.
Five years later, the Omnibus Prisons Bill became law and required all new prisons to provide for single-occupancy cells for all its inmates, to prevent the hitherto uncontrollable spread of diseases. Progressively, it required the cell to have windows on at least two sides and be able to close fully with a door. These measures were imposed before the bacterial theory of disease communication became widely accepted and were instead based on the idea that diseases spread through contaminated air and water; thus, the object is to keep cells ventilated and illuminated naturally and stale air. Further, the prison floor is also to be elevated off the ground, such that floodwater should not innundate the cell easily and simultaneously permit waste water to run off naturally.
The passage of the Omnibus bill did not require all prisons be rebuilt immediate to the new model, and older "open" prisons were operational well into the 1870s. Notorously, the Tlang-qrum Prison was never rebuilt owing to its reputation as a destination for the genuine undesirables—murderers, rapists, and burglars—despite abysmal conditions attending the premises.
Per the requirements of the Prisons Act, prisons must possess more cells than the number of prisoners currently assigned to its custody, and each prisoner must be entitled to a cell. Each cell is to have a flushing toilet with a cover, a sink with running water, a bed and stuffed mattress on it, and a window. From 1970, each cell is also served by a dumbwaiter, through which food, fresh laundry, and other items to which the prisoner is entitled are delivered. All are further regulated by executive ordinances as to dimensions and quality. Prisons are subject to the Construction Standards Act, Fire Prevention Act, and Building Capacity Act as much as normal buildings, respectively requiring sound structures, fire prevention and evacuation procedures, and maximum safe capacity in a building given its ventilation infrastructure and utility provision.
Currently, a statutory cell in Themiclesia measures 3 by 4 metres, with the shorter side facing the corridor. Most cells are considerably roomier, however. Also, given the legal requirement that prisoners are entitled to the right of equality, prison staff may not select favourites amongst its inmates and to them grant privileges.
Amenities in Themiclesian prisons include visitation rooms, phone booths, postal service, laundering facilities, infirmaries, libraries, and canteens. Outdoors, most prisons also possess tennis courts, squash courts, and putting greens; expansive gardens were ordered by the government to give the facility a less hostile image. A certain prison governor was also the subject of a noise complaint—of a karioke marathon in the middle of the night. Aside from visitation rooms, all other amenities are only accessible by staff members and visitors.
Routine
There is no set daily routine in Themiclesia's prisons. Prisoners may spent their time in the cell in whatever way they desire, though food is delivered via dumbwaiter at 6 a.m., 11 a.m., and 5 p.m. each day.
Every three months, prisoners are brought to a physician for to be examined for illnesses.
Security
A cell is separated from the corridor by means of a heavy metal gate, with nothing more than a peep-hole on it, secured by two locks from the outside. One is opened by a master key that is possessed by certain prison staff members, and the other is centrally kept by a dispensing device under the watch of the prison governor; the device only dispenses a key to one cell at one time, and it will not dispense another until the first one is returned. This control system can be overridden by an emergency alarm, which is activated at times of fire or flooding, requiring the immediate evacuation of all prisoners held. Prisons are also generally surrounded by multiple layers of brick-and-mortar walls that encircle its uncovered premises, so in the case of fire, prisoners may evacuate themselves to the clearing but not beyond its walls.
Reputation
Themiclesian prisons have been world-renowned for its excellent hygiene, order, security, pleasantness, and complete lack of violence. In fact, Themiclesia has not had a recorded case of prison violence or escape since the end of the Pan-Septentrion War. This has led to prisons not being segregated from cities, and most home-buyers are not adverse to a site proximal or even adjoining a prison.
However, critics allege that the appearance of peace and order are achieved through extreme confinement of prisoners and the total deprivation of any physical and empirical contact with the world beyond his cell. No prisoner is permitted to exit from his cell at any time, except for verified medical emergencies. Mental illness and suicide are also prominent issues in Themiclesian prisons, with some estimating that a prisoner only has a 12% chance of emerging from a prison alive and without mental health issues. 8% of all prisoners in Themiclesia attempt to commit suicide, and around ¼ of those cases result in a fatality.
Famous prisons
Lwrang
Lwrang Prison (迵圉, lwrang-ngwa) was built to replace the smaller Dra Prison located in the eastern precincts of Kien-k'ang in 1645. To conserve space within the city walls, it was built just outside of the Lwrang gate and facing Lwrang Road, hence its name. It occupied over 7 acres and was capable of housing more than 1,500 prisoners in 29 sections. The prison had a strong outer wall 6 m thick at the base and lined with masonry, and it also served as a military garrison because the garrison in the city was demolished in 1670 for property development.
The southeastern part of the prison's grounds was originally walled on only three sides, the side facing the road being only enclosed by a short wooden fence. This was where the prisoner's labour products, such as pottery, flour, and ropes, would be sold to the public. Behind a small, heavily fortified gatehouse was the working yard, where a variety of activities were performed, such as trodding clay, dyeing fabrics, or military exercises. This yard was only open to the public for executions, scheduled in September. Prisoners were beheaded or strangled depending on the offence, and wooden stakes and blocks were permanently erected in this area for this purpose. It is estimated that over 4,100 executions occurred during the prison's existence.
Because the prison was the site of a large number of executions, it was also the source of many rumours and urban legends. For example, it was claimed that a prisoner faced imminent execution if they heard footsteps belonging to no-one from behind, or saw the ghostly apparition of a man sitting on top of the prison's walls facing away. It was likewise claimed that the bodies of wicked criminals were tossed into a bottomless pit or pond. Though some elements of these legends may trace their histories to the period when the prison was operational, most such legends are thought to be modern and unrelated to the historic prison.
As urban population increased, the area around Lwrang Prison evolved from vacant or agricultural land to cottages over the prison's 200-year existence. By the 1830s, the prison was considered a hindrance on local property values. Nevertheless, it operated until it was sold to the Inland Railway Company in 1850 and turned into a marshalling yard, which is still active and serves Tlang-qrum Station. Parts of the prison's walls were retained to keep trespassers at bay, but all standing walls were demolished to permit the Central Junction Railway to connect through to the Inland Railway. During construction works in 1967, some wooden sleepers were found buried vertically in the eastern approach of the station, drawing a connection with the prison's infamous execution equipment. Local historians say, however, the former execution site is now located under Platform 2, 3, and 4.