Kondengui Central Prison is a

maximum security Maximum Security may refer to: * Supermax, "control-unit" prisons, or units within prisons * Maximum Security (comics), a comic book miniseries published by Marvel Comics * ''Maximum Security'' (Tony MacAlpine album), 1987 * ''Maximum Security'' ...

prison A prison, also known as a jail, gaol (dated, standard English, Australian, and historically in Canada), penitentiary (American English and Canadian English), detention center (or detention centre outside the US), correction center, corre ...

Yaoundé Yaoundé (; , ) is the capital of Cameroon and, with a population of more than 2.8 million, the second-largest city in the country after the port city Douala. It lies in the Centre Region of the nation at an elevation of about 750 metres (2,50 ...

Cameroon Cameroon (; french: Cameroun, ff, Kamerun), officially the Republic of Cameroon (french: République du Cameroun, links=no), is a country in west-central Africa. It is bordered by Nigeria to the west and north; Chad to the northeast; the C ...

. It has been the subject of numerous international criticisms for its overcrowding and poor conditions. Kondengui was constructed in 1967 and was originally built to house 1,500 inmates. The facility has 16 toilets and 400 beds. In 2002, prisoners were fed one meal a day and given 4.4 ounces of soap every six months. In 2003, the

US Department of State The United States Department of State (DOS), or State Department, is an executive department of the U.S. federal government responsible for the country's foreign policy and relations. Equivalent to the ministry of foreign affairs of other ...

issued a "scathing" report on Cameroonian prisons in which it noted that Kondengui was severely overcrowded, housing a population of 9,530 in space meant for 2,000. In 2011, Amnesty International described the prison conditions to be "harsh, with inmates suffering overcrowding, poor sanitation and inadequate food. Prison guards are poorly trained, ill-equipped and their numbers inadequate for a big prison population."

Notable current and past prisoners

* Albert Womah Mukong, a bookstore owner and pro-independence activist who wrote ''Prisoner Without a Crime'' based on his six years in prison during the 1970s and later became the head of Human Rights Defence Group, was imprisoned in Kondengui Central Prison in 2001 for his position on the self-determination of English speakers.Moorehead, Caroline. "Prisoner of Conscience: Activist jailed over interview: Albert Mukong", ''The Independent'', 27 March 1989. *

Garga Haman Adji Garga Haman Adji (born 27 January 1944Information on the First ''Ar ...

, politician, later Minister of Civil Service.Kini Nsom
"GARGA HAMAN ADJI: Hunting Embezzlers"
''The Post'' (Cameroon), 8 October 2004. * Issa Tchiroma Bakary, politician, later Minister of Communication.Xavier Messè
"Issa Tchiroma Bakary : Je n'ai pas de rancune"
, ''Mutations'', 6 April 2009 . * Mancho Bibixy Tse, A local radio journalist and history teacher that sparked the Coffin Revolution of 2016 denouncing the human rights violations of

's Anglophone Cameroonian population. He is currently a prisoner. * Jean-Claude Roger Mbede, imprisoned for

homosexuality Homosexuality is romantic attraction, sexual attraction, or sexual behavior between members of the same sex or gender. As a sexual orientation, homosexuality is "an enduring pattern of emotional, romantic, and/or sexual attractions" to pe ...

and named a prisoner of conscience by Amnesty International. * Enoh Meyomesse, dissident poet and presidential candidate imprisoned on widely disputed theft charges. Amnesty International, which does not have a permanent office in Cameroon, had named Meyomesse a prisoner of conscience. On April 16, 2015, after 40 months and 15 days in custody since his arrest on November 22, 2011, Enoh Meyomesse was finally declared not guilty and sprung from Kondengui Central Prison. * Germain Cyrille Ngota Ngota, journalist whose arrest and death while in detention were protested by Reporters Without BordersReporters Without Borders. 2010. “Sick Journalist Dies in Prison.” Retrieved September 20, 201

and the

Committee to Protect Journalists The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) is an American independent non-profit, non-governmental organization, based in New York City, New York, with correspondents around the world. CPJ promotes press freedom and defends the rights of journ ...

. TSI CONRAD is a political prisoner of Conscience arrested on the 8 December 2016 in Bamenda, Cameroon which is now arms conflict

In popular culture

Makossa Makossa is a Cameroonian style of urban music. Like much other late 20th century music of Sub-Saharan Africa, it uses strong electric bass rhythms and prominent brass. In the 1980s makossa had a wave of mainstream success across Africa and to a ...

singer Lapiro de Mbanga referenced the prison in a popular 2007 anti-corruption song, with lyrics including "Send them to Kondengui Prison. Everybody to Kondengui. ministers, directors send them to Kondengui".

References

{{coord missing, Cameroon Prisons in Cameroon Yaoundé