--by Stuart Kent

Ever wondered what the inside of a South American Prison was like? Get caught smuggling some cocaine out of Bolivia or for that matter any South American country and you are sure to find out. But there is some good news for all of us who do not want to commit a crime and still want to see the inside of a South American prison.

In La Paz Bolivia, the cities central prison has been opened up to visitors. I can with great assurance say it is has not been opened up with the formal authority of the state but with the tacit approval of the prisoner governor and the guards who are supplementing their wages with a 50 percent cut from the 10US$ fee wide eyed tourists who are visiting the prison pay.

It all started 7 years ago when a British inmate of the prison realised there was money to be made here. He charged interested backpackers 50US$ to spend a night partying in the prison’s recreation hall. All they had to do was turn up, bring the booze and pay. After bribing the guards he was able to ensure a regular flow of money from tourists searching for something different -a chance to party for a night in a South American prison and leave the next day with nothing but a hang over and great memories of a unique travelling experience.

The prison is situated in downtown La Paz; it covers a city block, has high walls and a significant police presence in the area. Three days a week, visitors, lawyers, family members and a collection of nervous looking back packers line up at the entrance to enter the prison. It is a picture of chaos as bags are searched in a haphazard manner and nervous looking tourists await the signal for them to enter the prison.

The sign on the wall saying, “The governor of the prison forbids all tourists to enter the prison” is ignored by all, both uniformed and tourists alike. I line up, hand over my passport, have a number written on my fore arm and prepare to enter the prison. The scene I can see through the bars is one of chaos as prisoners yell out and beckon the tourists to enter. I am filled with understandable apprehension as I go through the gate that in many ways would represent a nightmare to me if it was for real.

Upon entering the prison the first thing I notice is the lack of uniformed guards. I am told that the prison guards never enter the prison unless they have to and then in numbers of 20 or more. This does nothing to calm my fears as myself and 20 other inquisitive tourists are about to be immersed in the daily life of 1000 of Bolivia’s worst offenders, murders, rapists and drug smugglers. I take a few deep breaths and look around at fellow tourists and prisoners for some sign of assurance that all will be OK, none is forth coming

Soon I am ushered into a quiet courtyard where we meet our guide for the tour. His name is Hans a German national who has been behind these walls for three years. He is very thin and it is obvious that he has no trouble getting his hands on substances that make his time in the prison a little easier.

He explains the tour and the rules, simply put we are to stay with him, feel free to ask questions, do not be afraid; this last one he keeps repeating. I am starting to think all of us cannot hide our worry. Soon the members of our group are asking all sorts of questions. The most interesting are about Hans. Hans got busted with a couple kilos of cocaine at La Paz airport. His story is one of bad luck, after being strip-searched and getting the all clear, a customs official took Hans’s coat off the hook it was hanging on and realised it was very heavy – 2.5 kilos heavier than it should have been, the rest is a story of trials, corrupt police and a 30 year old German national doing an 8 year stretch. He hopes to be out in December. I have never felt sorry for a drug smuggler in my whole life but here I was talking to a man who was caught because a guard was too polite and wanted to help him with his coat.

As we leave our corner of the courtyard we begin our tour. We are told how the prison works. It all revolves around money! There are 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5 star sections of the prison and just like the hotel ranking system the 5 star section is the best. The prisoners buy their cells in a one off payment for the length of their sentence and depending on their available funds they go to different sections of the prison. In the 5 Star section a cell costs 5000US$, there is hot water, Satellite TV, restaurants to eat at, all the comforts of the outside world. Now it is hard to believe but there is a waiting list to get into these areas. Many inmates have the money, not hard to believe when there are guys in the prison doing 25 years for smuggling 4.5 tons of cocaine.

As we walk through the prison we visit the 4, 3, 2 and 1 star sections. The conditions get worse and I am reminded of scenes from Midnight Express. It is in the one star sections that I start to see what it is like for the majority of the prisoners. They are fed twice a day by the government who allegedly put tranquillisers in the food to keep the prisoners calm. The stench of sewerage is strong and the smell of unwashed men crammed sometimes 20 to a cell seems a world removed from the relatively luxurious conditions of the 5 star section.

The whole prison was a mini free world where elections are held for prison representatives, soccer matches take place and are sponsored to the tune of 10,000 US$ by Coke, I mean the soft drink company – no Pepsi in this prison. Wives visit and if a prisoner has enough money she may live in the prison. There are 300 children currently living in the prison and the funds from the tour groups are helping to build a kindergarten for them.

As our tour wound up, I realised that whilst this was a surreal experience it was also the purest form of capitalism I had even seen. Here was a community of 1000 men who live by the rules of supply and demand and where the rich get richer and the poor are trampled on.

As I departed the prison and left to enjoy the benefits of freedom I asked Hans what he will do when he gets out. His response, “Deal drugs all over Europe”. I realised that his prison experience nothing to re-educate him or deter him from future criminal activity, in fact it seemed that the punishment aspect of prison life was nonexistent.

Money made the world go round in there, 50 bucks got a kilo of Coke into the prison, 30 allowed your wife or girlfriend to spend the night, 150 bucks was enough to buy a night of freedom on the town dancing the night away at the local discos.

Ironically greed and money put many of the offenders in the prison and yet this is exactly what each prisoner needs to survive in a prison in La Paz, Bolivia. Some prisoners leave richer than when they went in. Who says crime does not pay!