This Wednesday morning, guards and employees of the Arras remand center, in the Pas-de-Calais, walked out and blocked the establishment to protest against its overcrowding, according to a union source.
About thirty of the 88 employees of the remand center participated in the action, which began at 6 a.m., said Fabien Hurtrel, local secretary of Ufap-Unsa, confirming information from France Bleu Nord. “We only let the nurses through, the visiting rooms and canteens are blocked, we prevented one extraction and slowed down another,” said this supervisor. Management for its part confirmed that a blockage was in progress, but without further details.
Overpopulation and projectiles
According to Fabien Hurtrel, the action, which should continue until the end of the afternoon, aims to obtain a “decongestion of the prison”, which currently accommodates “262 prisoners for 200 beds”, due in particular to work carried out in another remand center in the region, in Douai.
The staff also calls for measures to “secure against projectiles”, very numerous and launched in particular from a car park adjoining the establishment, he added. During discussions, the management committed to “massive transfers soon”, “but we are waiting to see”, he said.