Overcrowding in prisons

Pakistan's prison system is buckling under a wholly avoidable overpopulation crisis. The latest Annual Prisons Data Report reveals a staggering 110,513 people behind bars, with three out of every four - 82,988 individuals - having never been convicted of a crime. Our jails now hold 41,681 more people than they were designed for, operating at over 160 per cent of authorised capacity.

Many of those under trial are only there because they can't afford bail. The root cause is an over-reliance on pre-trial detention and a broken bail system. People have been languishing for months, often years, awaiting a verdict. The courts have a backlog of over two million cases, and investigators and prosecutors do not help much by working at a snail's pace. And even in cases where bail should easily be available - such as non-violent crimes - structural hurdles, including an overreliance on pre-trial detention, stand in the way. Small-time drug peddlers are an example. Over 28,000 people are imprisoned under drug laws, a 43 per cent increase since 2023. Many of these individuals are not hardened criminals but petty offenders and the socioeconomically vulnerable, who cannot afford private counsel or surety bonds. The National Commission for Human Rights chairperson observed, "People enter prison faster than our justice system can process them."

Building more prisons is an option, but it is a bad one, because it would not address the underlying problem. Instead, the government should encourage bail reform, reduce unnecessarily long sentences and encourage the use of probation and parole. Until then, Pakistan's prisons will remain warehouses for the unconvicted, and like all the warehouses full of sensitive documents that would magically catch fire every year, the buildings are once again at high risk of fire.