The Quebec government has reversed its ban on smoking in prisons just days after its implementation. Inmates at provincial prisons were banned from smoking on Feb. 5, but after last Friday's announcement by Public Security Minister Jacques Dupuis, smoking will now be allowed outdoors.
The announcement came hours after rioting at the Orsainville jail just north of Quebec City. The disturbance, begun by inmates setting fires inside their cells, was attributed by many to the new law.
However, Philippe Archambault, spokesperson for the office of Dupuis, explained that the relaxation of the ban was not reactionary.
"There were a variety of technicalities within the ban that took a while to flesh out," he said. "It took three or four days to make sure everything was in place before adjustments."
Citing an unhealthy work environment for prison staff and general health concerns for non-smoking prisoners as motivating factors, the bill came as no surprise as Quebec is the last province in Canada where inmates still enjoyed the right to smoke.
"Everyone should have known it was coming. This had been in the works since August [2007]," Archambault said.
This ban follows the lead of federal prisons where there has been a ban on indoor smoking since 2006.
Due to complaints over the difficulty of enforcing the partial ban, the Correctional Service of Canada are set to enforce a full ban on Apr. 30.
"We haven't had that many problems since January 2006 and the ban on smoking indoors with federal facilities, although we did impose a few disciplinary measures," said Jean-Yves Roy, a spokesperson for the Quebec federal correctional facilities.
Roughly 80 per cent of Quebec's prisoners are smokers and staff members have been known to encourage the activity. Deemed a social activity and a welcome distraction, it also appeared to calm the nerves of prisoners. The prison's hostile environment, coupled with the known symptoms of nicotine withdrawal have led many to fear unrest in the provincial jails where inmates are allowed outside for only one hour each day.
"The effects of smoking on physiology and mood, and the specific effects of nicotine withdrawal are well documented," said Dr. Kathryn Gill, associate professor of psychiatry at McGill. These symptoms include tingling in hands or feet, sweating, headaches, nausea, anxiety, irritability and general unpleasantness.
Nicotine patches and gum are available to the inmates who pay out of pocket and must apply for reimbursement from the Quebec drug plan.
Smokers' rights groups claimed that prison staff would have a hard time controlling the problem. The Web site mychoice.ca asserted that prohibiting tobacco would lead to increased tension between prisoners and staff.
Despite the riot last Thursday, Archambault found that prisoners have reacted more favourably than predicted.
"For the most part we were all surprised at how smoothly everything was going. There was grumbling, but not a significant amount," he said.
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