Changi Prison facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
Changi Prison Complex

The Prison Link Centre of the Changi Prison Complex in Changi, Singapore.
Location in Singapore
Coordinates	1°21′25.47″N 103°58′25.11″E / 1.3570750°N 103.9736417°E / 1.3570750; 103.9736417
Status	Operational
Security class	Maximum
Capacity	11,000
Opened	1936 (1936) (89 years ago)
Managed by	Singapore Prison Service

Changi Prison Complex, often known simply as Changi Prison, is a prison complex in the namesake district of Changi in the eastern part of Singapore. It is the oldest and largest prison in the country, covering an area of about 50 ha (120 acres). Opened in 1936, the prison has a rich history.

Changi Prison was first built in 1936 by the British colonial government to replace the old prison that was located in Pearl's Hill. The prison was constructed with the intention of housing a large number of prisoners, as Singapore was rapidly growing and needed a larger facility to accommodate them. The prison was designed to house up to 600 prisoners. During World War II and after the Fall of Singapore, Changi Prison became notorious for its role as a prisoner-of-war camp for Allied soldiers captured by the Japanese. During the occupation, the Japanese used the prison to house prisoners of war (POW) captured from all over the Asia-Pacific. Many of these prisoners were subjected to brutal treatment and forced labour, and a significant number died from malnutrition, disease, and mistreatment.

After the war, Changi Prison was used by the British to house prisoners of various categories, including political detainees. In the 1950s and 1960s, the prison became a symbol of Singapore's struggle for independence, as many political prisoners were held there for their anti-colonial and nationalist activities. The prison also played a significant role in Singapore's development after its independence, as many prisoners were put to work in various industries, such as farming and construction. In the 1970s and 1980s, Changi Prison underwent major renovations and upgrades to improve its facilities and security. New buildings were constructed, including a maximum-security block for high-risk prisoners.

Changi Prison remains in operation as a crucial component of Singapore's criminal justice system. The prison is well-known for its strict discipline and emphasis on rehabilitation, with a focus on providing prisoners with rehabilitation programs such as education and vocational training to help them rebuild their lives and reintegrate into society after their release. The Changi Chapel and Museum is also located close to the prison.

Notable detainees

Prisoners of war

Allied prisoners of war piling out of the main gate of the Changi Prison after the British liberation of Singapore in September 1945

• Sir Norman Alexander Professor of Physics, Raffles College, Singapore, Vice-Chancellor, Ahmadu Bello University, Nigeria. Helped build a salt evaporation plant at Changi and a small industrial plant that fermented surgical spirit and other products for the prison hospital.
• Sir Harold Atcherley, businessman, public figure and arts administrator.
• Geoffrey Bingham, AM, MM (1919–2009), who returned to Australia and wrote several books reflecting on his experiences, including his conversion to Christian faith in The Story of the Rice Cakes, Angel Wings, and Tall Grow the Tallow Woods.
• Freddy Bloom (1914–2000), journalist and campaigner for deaf children.
• Russell Braddon (1921–1995), Australian writer, who wrote "The Naked Island" about his POW experience.
• Sheila Bruhn (née Allan), who wrote about her experiences in Diary of a Girl in Changi.
• Sir John Carrick (Australian politician), AC, KCMG (1918–2018). The impact of his experiences on his political thinking is described in his biography, "Carrick: Principles, Politics, and Policy," written by Graeme Starr.
• Anthony Chenevix-Trench (1919–1979), Headmaster of Eton College, 1964–70.
• James Clavell is one of the most famous survivors; he wrote about his experiences in the book King Rat.
• Eugene Ernest Colman, chess master.
• John Coast (1916–1989), British writer and music promoter. He wrote one of the earliest and well-known POW memoirs of Changi The Railroad of Death, (1946). Coast admitted that he and his fellow officers regularly stole coconuts during the night to alleviate their hunger. Other works of Coast include Dancers of Bali (1953), and Dancing Out of Bali (1954).
• Hugh Edward de Wardener, British, CBE, MBE (1915–2013), physician and professor of medicine at Charing Cross Hospital. He was a member of the Royal Army Medical Corps. He operated a Cholera Ward at the prison hospital. He also treated British soldiers who were forced to build the Burma Railway. Although he lived to 98, he suffered from peripheral neuropathy, a legacy of Changi, in his last months.
• Noel Duckworth, Chaplain, Churchill College, Cambridge.
• John Cade, Australian psychiatrist who pioneered the use of lithium in bipolar disorder.
• Lieutenant Colonel Sir Ernest Edward "Weary" Dunlop, AC, CMG, OBE (1907–1993), was an Australian surgeon who was renowned for his leadership
• Carl Alexander Gibson-Hill, medical doctor and Director of the Raffles Museum.
• John Hayter, Anglican priest who later wrote of his experiences in Priest in Prison.
• Percy Herbert (1920–1992) actor. Noted for roles in Bridge on the River Kwai and Mutiny on the Bounty, The Guns of Navarone and Tobruk.
• Graham Hough, Professor of English, University of Cambridge, 1966–75.
• Ezekiel Saleh Manasseh (died 1944), Singaporean rice merchant, died in Changi Prison.
• Sir Percy McElwaine, the Chief Justice of the Straits Settlement.
• Jim Milner AM (1919–2007), Former chairman Washington H. Soul Pattinson and former President NRMA.
• Sir Alexander Oppenheim, mathematician. In 1984, he published "The prisoner's walk: an exercise in number theory", based in part of his experiences at Changi.
• Frank Murray (1912-1993) - Belfast doctor
• Lieutenant-General Arthur Ernest Percival, commander of Allied forces in Singapore, following his surrender to the Japanese; he was moved to a camp in China in late 1942.
• Sydney Piddington, postwar Australian mentalist entertainer with wife Leslie, "The Piddingtons" ABC and BBC radio and stage mindreading team, who developed his verbal code in Changi.
• Rohan Deakin Rivett (1917–1977), Australian writer, War correspondent and journalist with British Malaya Broadcasting Corporation in Singapore. Formerly a soldier in the Australian Imperial Force. He was captured by the Japanese on 8 March, in Java. His experiences are recorded in his book Behind Bamboo (1946).
• Tjalie Robinson (1911–1974), Dutch Indo-European (Eurasian) author, activist, journalist.
• Ronald Searle, cartoonist.
• Robert Skene, ten-goal polo player.
• The Reverend James Donald (Donald) Smith, British 18th Division, author of And All The Trumpets, a history of his time as a POW in Changi Prison and building the Burma Road.
• Colonel Julian Taylor FRCS, surgeon.
• Ernest Tipson, linguist.
• Sir Michael Turner (1953–1962), Chief Manager of the Hong Kong and Shanghai Bank
• Arthur Varley, Australian Army officer & diarist
• Leo Vroman, Dutch poet.
• Stanley Warren, artist and art teacher; murals produced during his incarceration remain at the prison.
• Ian Watt (1917–1999), literary critic, literary historian and professor of English at Stanford University.
• Leonard Wilson, Bishop of Singapore, and later Bishop of Birmingham.
• Sir Michael Woodruff, surgeon and scientist.

See also

• Changi Murals
• Double Tenth incident
• John Mennie – prisoner who drew life in the camps and the Selarang Square Squeeze.
• Kempeitai East District Branch
• Selarang Barracks Incident