The department of prisons in Makkah is planning to implement a number of development projects in its prisons, including special buildings for visitors, the Makkah daily reported on Wednesday, quoting the department's director Col. Saleh Al-Qahtani. "We will build gymnasiums, playgrounds and educational institutions in our prisons," he said. Qahtani said the department would construct a well-equipped special building for visitors, starting with the reformatory in Makkah. "The new visitors' building is designed to ensure visitors with complete comfort, particularly the old people and visitors with special needs," he said. Qahtani said the visitors would no longer have to go to the prisoners in their cells, as the inmates will be brought to them in the visitors' building. "We have a number of gigantic projects which will benefit both the inmates and the visitors. These projects will be implemented very soon," he said. The director said as many as 119 prisoners in Makkah benefited from the educational partnership with Umm Al-Qura University by taking up undergraduate studies, 166 from the partnership with the industrial institute and 172 have completed their elementary, intermediate or secondary education while behind the bars. "The education the prisoners had while serving their jail terms have upgraded the level of their behavior," he said. Qahtani said they also have Qur'an memorization rings inside the prisons under the supervision of the Umm Al-Qura University. "We also have an audio library, which helps the prisoners memorize the Holy Book," he added. The director said an average of four prisoners graduate from the Qur'an memorization rings every month after learning the Qur'an by heart. "We have lucrative incentives for the prisoners who memorize the Qur'an while they are in jail. Among others, these include reduction of the jail terms, inclusion in the list of prisoners to benefit from the general pardon and financial rewards," he said.
