Prison for Profit

(Prison for Profit)

Torturing prisoners with electroshocks and the forced application of depressants are only two consequences of the privatisation of a South African prison as revealed in this Dutch investigative documentary.

Maungang Prison in Johannesburg, South Africa, is not run by the state but by the supranational giant G4S. The original aim was to create an environment that would aid in the resocialisation of prisoners and save taxpayers’ money. Though the company denies it, the result is the complete opposite. In collaboration with investigative reporter Ruth Hopkins, the filmmaker collected many video records in Maungang Prison itself. The testimony of guards and prisoners provides convincing evidence that the omnipresent violence is the result of the contract that pays the company a certain amount per prisoner per day. The state’s goal is to reduce criminality but the private operator has only one objective – its own profit.

Czech premiere

About the film

Director: Ilse Van Velzen, Femke van Velzen
Netherlands
2019 | 83 min.

Language: Afrikaan, English

Subtitles: English

Director

Femke van Velzen

Festival guest on days
Mar 08 - Mar 10, 2020

Filmography
2019 - Prison for Profit
2016 - A Haunting History
2011 - Justice for Sale

Ilse Van Velzen

Screenings

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