Surfing for news has become a popular pastime for inmates of the
Beijing Women's Prison since the institute went on-line this
month.
On Nov. 12, the capital's only women prison established a local
area network so that inmates can learn about news from the outside
world from behind bars. The website also has information about
prison events and policies and allows inmates to comment
electronically, said Xu Xiuchang, an official with the Beijing
Prison Administration Bureau publicity office on Thursday.
The jail has allocated several computer-equipped rooms for
inmates and provides time for them to go on-line. Xu would not
divulge how much time the women were allocated on-line each
day.
A team of wardens has been put in charge of collecting and
editing news and putting documents on the website.
"We try our best to post news that interests inmates and
policies and laws they need to know," Xu said.
However, the network is cut off from the worldwide web and
doesn't provide on-line chatting services between inmates.
The prison, in Daxing County in a southern Beijing suburb, has
more than 900 inmates. It has adopted several humanitarian measures
such as allowing conjugal visits by their husbands during
festivals.
Last year, 12 inmates cited for good behaviour spent 24 hours
with their husbands during the Spring Festival in January.
(Xinhua News Agency November 23, 2007)