Asif MahmoodWhen in power, our rulers have little interest in reforming the prison system. But the moment they land behind bars, they discover its every flaw, its every cruelty, and suddenly present themselves as the most oppressed people on earth. Once released, however, they forget it all. The question is: why?The answer is not hard to find. They know that prison, for them, is seldom a place of real hardship. It is merely a brief interruption before they return to the business of power. The moment they enter a jail, special medical units are arranged, spacious cells are set aside, and food far beyond the reach of ordinary prisoners is served.The issue is not that elite prisoners receive medical treatment or special facilities when genuinely needed. They should. The real question is why such care and concern seem to be reserved for them alone. When will the ordinary prisoner be afforded the same basic dignity, medical care and humane treatment that we so readily demand for the powerful?Sometimes, an entire floor of a private hospital is cleared for a single VIP prisoner, while elsewhere we read of children dying because no hospital bed was available for them. The contrast could hardly be more absurd: when the powerful fall ill, hospitals make room for them; when an ordinary child needs treatment, there may not even be a bed. Yet the message from the system seems clear: Your Majesty, the others can wait. Please take your place. May your glory forever shine.According to statistics from a few years ago, 20 prisoners died of heart and liver diseases in Rawalpindi alone in a single year. Yet did anyone ever open a hospital door for them? Forget an entire floor. Was even a single bed in a hospital ever made available to them?We are quick to concern ourselves with the delicate sensibilities of the ruling elite. We are told that a gentleman’s anxiety has risen, that his blood pressure is elevated, or that his mental well-being requires special attention. But has anyone ever stopped to ask about the 3,499 women languishing in our prisons? What are their living........

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