I spent from 1st Jan to 16th Dec 2003 in prison in Spain and am writing this in order to give information and peace of mind to people who find their loved ones in the same situation.
I think the most important thing I learnt was that I had no control over the situation at all. The quicker you learn this, the more you can benefit from a situation that cannot be changed. Try not to panic. Someone will let you out in the end!
I’ll get into rules and regs shortly but the single most important thing to any prisoner, whatever the age, race, creed, gender etc, is receiving mail. If you have someone on the inside, never underestimate the importance of actually setting that 10 mins aside to write something down. Get everyone they know to do the same, whether it’s an essay or simply “I’m thinking about you” scribbled on a scrap of paper and stuffed in an envelope. Letters really do keep you going and there’s normally an almighty scramble for “los correos” every week-day morning. Puzzles, crosswords, photos, cartoon strips etc can also be included. Post will always be opened before it’s given to the prisoner, but always in front of them. A friend of mine used to receive money that had been stashed behind a photo stuck to a card and normally it got through. However, if it’s found, it will normally be taken and put into an account that the prisoner will receive the day they get released. Some prison officers will, if you’ve been a good boy/girl (!) and there is no-one else around, let you keep it. But only the sweetest ones! (The same goes for stamps by the way – sometimes they’ll get through, sometimes they won’t).
There are slight variations from prison to prison (I passed through 7 during my 340 days) but the rules are fundamentally the same throughout. It would have been nice to have been allowed to make 5 phone calls a week, we only ever had 2 of 10 mins each, or 1 of 20 mins in one week. Again, it does depend on the officer watching the queue. Phone cards can be bought at the tuck-shop-type-place but a great way to help is to buy those phone card codes and simply write it in the middle of the letter somewhere. The more eagle-eyed, strict officers will root through looking for them though (they aren’t actually permitted – ‘if you can buy it from the prison, you can’t have it sent’ is the normal rule) so do try to disguise them slightly. The major benefit is that very very few officers speak English so you can explain it all within the letter. Or write the numbers of the code as words!
Visits have to be requested on both sides; my partner’s mother thought she’d surprise us and just turn up, but since we hadn’t requested a visit, it was a wasted trip and she flew back without seeing us. The prisoner writes an “instancia”, (like a request form, one must be written for absolutely everything) with up to 5 names of family or friends (these names can be changed at any time). Then when you wish to visit a prisoner, you are authorised to do so, but don’t forget your ID. Prisoners have 2 locutorio visits (behind glass, though I never came across anywhere with grilles or bars) and 1 family vis a vis plus 1 vis a vis for partners per month. The partner vis a vis cannot be used by family. If you’re husband/wife does not visit, it cannot be passed to family members and in that circumstance, the prisoner would only get one vis a vis per month. Vis a vis with friends is not allowed. The Spanish concept of manana is no more alive and kicking anywhere than in prison, please allow at least two weeks for it all to go though.
The British Consulate can provide a letter for common-law partners, as they obviously won’t have a marriage certificate, which would normally have to be produced. This will be accepted without question.
It states on this website that a prisoner will be strip-searched after a vis a vis – I’ve never known that to happen, more than a cursory frisk. Prison officers know rightly who is on drugs and who isn’t, and will search the likely suspects, but they are not allowed to poke around, to put it politely. A prisoner can be sent to hospital for an internal scan but the officers are absolutely not ever allowed to do it themselves.
“Peculio” is a prisoner’s bank account and if someone has sent money in for them (family, friends, lawyers can deposit money in peculio) it can be taken out on a weekly basis, up to 60 euros at a time. Prison is, however, the only place on earth where you can survive without money. The priest will normally distribute cigarettes and the prison will provide clothes and shoes to those in need. Prisoners will normally help each other out (unless you’ve seriously annoyed everyone in the entire place) and those with money will provide for those without. I was overwhelmed many times by how people would bend over backwards and go to the longest lengths to find me an envelope or a sheet of paper or a fancy top to go to a visit in. The simplest things become very important on the inside! If you’re not in a position to send money to relatives, try not to beat yourself up over it, your loved ones will not starve. To be fair it’s horrible to have no money but prison is there for a reason and it’s definitely character building!
The parcels page on this website is fairly comprehensive and they’ve covered everything there. As well as tvs, radios also have to be bought from the prison and will not be allowed in.
To conclude, in my experience it must be a million times harder for those left outside, thinking of their loved ones on the inside, as it actually is to be there (at least in Spain, it would be a different kettle of fish to be in prison in England). We had a discussion once about freedom, and most of us were of the conclusion that in prison, you’re actually much more free than on the outside. The only thing you can’t do is walk out the door. However, there is no council tax, parking fines, job worries, drive-by shootings, hospital waiting lists etc etc etc. That might seem flippant but it did get me through. There was food (admittedly of varying standards but its amazing what you’ll eat when you’re hungry enough!), doctor if you needed one, education, fresh air, clothes if you needed them, and so on. I met some fantastic people, learnt Spanish fluently and wouldn’t change a day of it. Some people go on retreats in the Himalayas to find themselves, I’d recommend a stretch in a Spanish prison! I saw a total of no fights, the warders were very fair (provided you treated them with respect) and all the fundamentals were catered for. It’s honestly not as bad as in your nightmares!
For those people with loved ones inside, try to remain as positive as possible when talking or writing to them, and write often. Good luck!
