DISCUSSIONS about a landmark bill that would overhaul Bahrain's prison system continued yesterday at the Shura Council.

Members approved a number of articles, including one that would make it compulsory for transferred prisoners' relatives to be notified the first day they are moved - or the relevant embassy in the case of expats.

They also approved an article that would make it compulsory for prisoners to receive guidelines - either written or verbal - on their first day in custody, explaining their rights and the facility's rules.

Other articles approved by the Shura Council include one that would oblige prison wardens to report deaths, fatal injuries or escape attempts - in addition to strikes, chaos and riots - the moment they happened to the Public Prosecution or concerned judicial bodies.

The Shura Council also backed an article that would allow social supervisors to rehabilitate prisoners so they could be more easily reintegrated into society, along with another that states each prisoner must have a personal file (both in paper and electronic form) containing all of their details and fingerprints, besides other identification.

Another approved article states that prisoners' belongings must be stored in the prison safe and be returned upon their release.

However, discussions on other articles in the draft bill will continue after Shura Council members expressed reservations yesterday.

They want the new law to fall in line with Bahrain Independent Commission of Inquiry (BICI) recommendations and voiced concern over the detention of suspects at police stations without concerned judicial bodies being notified.

Members also questioned whether prisoners' medical, psychological and psychiatric reports should be compiled by correctional facility doctors, arguing they were not impartial, while requesting more information about plans to provide up to eight hours of work a day for inmates.

The same chamber last week objected to police having powers to detain suspects in custody for up to three months without a court order, saying it could be in breach of human rights.

It also questioned an article that defined a new personnel structure for correctional facilities, including the appointment of a director-general in charge of all facilities and wardens.

The Interior Ministry wants the term "prison" to be phased out along with the cancellation of the 1964 Prisons Law, which the Shura Council has already backed - although it asked what difference this would make to the running of correctional facilities.

Already approved by the Shura Council is a reclassification of detention facilities, which involves dividing them according to sex, age, type of crime and period of arrest and articles guaranteeing prisoners would not be discriminated against based on their religion, gender, ethnicity, origin or language.

Discussions on the law were originally referred to parliament in 2007 and completed in 2010, before being sent to the Shura Council last February.

It has been under review by the Shura Council's Foreign Affairs, Defence and National Security Committee.