Black Beach ( es, Playa Negra), located on the island of

Bioko Bioko (; historically Fernando Po; bvb, Ëtulá Ëria) is an island off the west coast of Africa and the northernmost part of Equatorial Guinea. Its population was 335,048 at the 2015 census and it covers an area of . The island is located of ...

, in the capital city of Malabo in Equatorial Guinea, is one of Africa's most notorious

prison A prison, also known as a jail, gaol (dated, standard English, Australian, and historically in Canada), penitentiary (American English and Canadian English), detention center (or detention centre outside the US), correction center, corre ...

History

The prison was built in the

1940s File:1940s decade montage.png, Above title bar: events during World War II (1939–1945): From left to right: Troops in an LCVP landing craft approaching Omaha Beach on D-Day; Adolf Hitler visits Paris, soon after the Battle of France; The Ho ...

during the time of the Spanish colonial rule. At first common criminals were imprisoned here, but after the independence of the country in 1968 and the establishment of the dictatorship of

Francisco Macías Nguema Francisco Macías Nguema ( Africanised to Masie Nguema Biyogo Ñegue Ndong; 1 January 1924 – 29 September 1979), often mononymously referred to as Macías, was an Equatoguinean politician who served as the first President of Equatorial Guinea ...

, many political opponents were imprisoned and killed in the prison, including Bonifacio Ondó Edu and Edmundo Bossio.

Reputation

It has a reputation for systematically neglecting and brutalising inmates. Medical treatment is usually denied to inmates and food rations are said to be meager, despite the

United Nations The United Nations (UN) is an intergovernmental organization whose stated purposes are to maintain international peace and security, develop friendly relations among nations, achieve international cooperation, and be a centre for harmoniz ...

Standard Minimum Rules for the Treatment of Prisoners The United Nations Standard Minimum Rules for the Treatment of Prisoners were adopted by the United Nations General Assembly on 17 December 2015 after a five-year revision process. They are known as the Mandela Rules in honor of the former Sout ...

requiring minimal medical treatment for all prisoners.

Noted individuals linked with the prison

Former governor

The President of Equatorial Guinea,

Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo (; born 5 June 1942) is an Equatoguinean politician and former military officer who has served as the second president of Equatorial Guinea since August 1979. He is the longest-serving president of any country ev ...

, is a former

Governor A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...

of Black Beach Prison. His uncle and predecessor,

, was imprisoned here after he was overthrown in a 1979 coup d'état, and was subsequently executed by firing squad.

Prisoners

Black Beach has held a number of foreign prisoners, mainly mercenaries sentenced for participating in a 2004 coup d'état attempt against the President of Equatorial Guinea, Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo. These included

Nick du Toit Servaas Nicolaas "Niek" du Toit is a former South African arms dealer, former mercenary and former colonel of 32 Battalion and the 5th Reconnaissance Commando. He was implicated in the plot to overthrow Teodoro Obiang of Equatorial Guinea. Fail ...

and alleged ringleader,

Simon Mann Simon Francis Mann (born 26 June 1952) is a British mercenary and former officer in the SAS. He trained to be an officer at Sandhurst and was commissioned into the Scots Guards. He later became a member of the SAS. On leaving the military, h ...

, until their presidential pardon on 2 and 3 November 2009 respectively, on humanitarian grounds. Ramón Esono Ebalé spent 6 months in Black Beach until he was released in March 2018 after a police officer admitted to falsely accusing him based on orders from his superiors. Several people have been jailed there in the over the 40 years of dictatorship. Among those imprisoned and tortured are many political leaders such as Rafael Upiñalo (Movimiento), Fabián Nsue (UP), Felipe Ondo Obiang (FDR), Martín Puye of Movement for the Self-Determination of Bioko Island (MAIB) or Plácido Micó of the Social Democratic Convergence for Social Democracy (CPDS).

References

External links

Guillermo Nguema Ela, Donato Ondó Ondó and other detainees in Black Beach prison
Amnesty International * {{cite news , date=2 June 2007 , url=https://www.standard.co.uk/news/inside-black-beach-prison-the-hell-hole-awaiting-dog-of-war-simon-mann-6587521.html , title=Inside Black Beach prison, the 'hell hole' awaiting Dog of War Simon Mann , newspaper= London Evening Standard Bioko Law of Equatorial Guinea Prisons in Equatorial Guinea