Right-wing and far-right elected officials were outraged after the broadcast, Friday, August 19, of a video showing inmates racing karts with prison guards. However, they participated in a charity event organized by the program “Kholantess” of the youtuber Djibril Dramé with the authorization of the Ministry of Justice, in a prison where the conditions of detention are very difficult.
A go-kart race, a quiz, water games, tug of war, all in the courtyard of a prison bringing together inmates, prison guards and residents of working-class neighborhoods. It did not take less to trigger the ire of right-wing and far-right politicians such as the deputy Les Républicains Éric Ciotti or Gilbert Collard, the honorary president of the far-right party Reconquête!. Like the vice-president of the National Assembly of the National Assembly, Hélène Laporte, everyone tweeted on Saturday, indignant that prisoners could engage in a fun activity during their incarceration. The far-right elected official writes: “During this time, one in three children does not go on vacation due to a lack of financial means. Taxpayers will be happy to see where their money goes”.
Contacted by RFI, Dominique Simonnot, the general controller of places of deprivation of liberty in France slips, tired of these reactions: “It didn’t cost anyone anything, it was the production that paid for everything. Our taxes don’t go through that.”
The controversy swelled on the social network and the Minister of Justice, Éric Dupond-Moretti reacted immediatelytoo, with a tweet: “After the shocking images from Fresnes prison, I immediately ordered an investigation [administrative] … ». However, the holding of the event had been validated by the ministry according to information from our colleagues from Figaro. On the BFMTV channel, the producer of the show “Kholantess”, Enzo Angelo Santo confirms this: “Everyone was aware of our action. We signed an agreement between our parties and the prison administration. »
Event for charities
Behind this controversy, there is the show “Kohlanness” hosted by youtuber Djibril Dramé. He had already organized this type of event between young people from the city of Fresnes and the police in July. The aim of the show is simple: teams compete in fun games to bring together different audiences. For Dominique Simonnot, this event is likely to bring prisoners and prison guards closer together. “There is violence in prison between prisoners and with the guards. There, it was a moment of relaxation where they could all be proud of having done something good. she explains.
Indeed, each team represented a charity organization. The team of supervisors won 1,700 euros for Arc-en-Ciel Associationwhich aims to make the dream of sick children come true, the prison team 650 euros for the Relay children parents association which helps to maintain the links between the child and his incarcerated parent. Young people from the city of Fresnes collected 350 euros for the Unitess association, which links young people from working-class neighborhoods and institutions. At the end of the video posted on the Youtube channel by Djibril Dramé “Djibril942 60”, we see the participants all smiles, congratulated by the director of the Fresnes prison, Jimmy Delliste.
Difficult conditions of detention
The video also aims to educate young people about prison. Contrary to what the authors of the controversial tweets suggest, an event like this is not easily organized in prisons. “These activities are extremely monitored. It is very complicated to obtain the authorizations. The prison administration does not authorize just anything. In addition, these activities are quite rare. There are so many people in prison that few inmates have access to it”, explains Danielle Simonnot, controller of places of deprivation of liberty in France. Throughout the program, detainees testify to their conditions of detention and the harshness of life behind bars: “Even in a heat wave, we only have three showers a week, it’s not the med club” (from the name of clubs vacance, editor’s note), says one of them who wears the yellow T-shirt of the prisoners’ team. “Koh Lantess, it reminded us for a few seconds of what it was like to be outside”.
Inside, conditions are difficult. “It’s a prison that is 144% overcrowded, where there are mattresses on the floor, rats everywhere, bed bugs and cockroaches. Sleeping on a mattress on the floor means breathing in cockroaches when you sleep. Inmates put toilet paper in their noses and ears to prevent this. For me, the scandal is there! », explains Dominique Simonnot. Faced with accusations that compare prison to a holiday club, she blows “I thought we were out of this ridiculous gimmick that says prison is club med. Ask Patrick Balkany (the former mayor of Levallois-Perret guilty of tax evasion and released in early August, editor’s note). He says himself that the prison was hard and again, he benefited from exceptional conditions, there were not three of them in his cell. »