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Indonesia raises budget for prisoners’ meals
The budget increase is significant due to the rising number of prisoners. The government spends on average Rp 20,000 to feed each prisoner each day.
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Inmates receive visitors at Sukamiskin Prison in Bandung, West Java, on Monday. (The Jakarta Post/Arya Dipa)
L
aw and Human Rights Minister Yasonna Laoly revealed on Thursday that the food budget for prisoners would rise to Rp 1.79 trillion in 2019, an increase from Rp 1.3 trillion this year.
The increase of the budget was a result of the increase of the number of prisoners, which has led to prison overcrowding.
“It is a significant increase caused by the rising number of prisoners. We spend on average Rp 20,000 to feed each prisoner each day,” Yasonna said at his office in Jakarta on Thursday as quoted by kompas.com.
“We get more and more prisoners every year. That’s why the food budget often goes beyond what we have set in the state budget,” he said.
As of the end of 2018, the total number of prisoners was 256,273, or 24,197 more than the previous year, while in fact the capacity of all prisons is for a maximum of 126,164 prisoners.
Meanwhile, the total number of drug inmates, consisting of drug smugglers and users, was 74,037 and 41,252, respectively. (foy)
