Unusual Prison Security Measures: From Crocodile Moats to Dancing Inmates

A proposal by Israeli National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir and Environmental Protection Minister Idit Silman has generated considerable public discussion: a moat to be constructed at Ketziot Prison, populated with crocodiles, intended to add a deterrent layer around a wing housing security prisoners. Construction on the moat has already begun, though in early August a court temporarily halted the plan to transfer crocodiles to the site.

For those who find the crocodile concept unusual, it turns out that prisons worldwide have featured equally unconventional approaches. From facilities on isolated islands where the surrounding sea made escape nearly impossible, to hundreds of inmates performing synchronized dance routines, to prisoners pedaling stationary bicycles to reduce their sentences—correctional systems have employed remarkably creative methods over the years.

Most shocking prisons in the world (Video: Srugim)

Devil's Island, located off French Guiana, earned its ominous name for good reason. The small, isolated landmass was part of France's notorious penal colony system that operated in the region for nearly a century.

Surrounded by ocean, rocks, and powerful currents, the island was extremely difficult to reach and even more dangerous to escape from. The facility was used to exile political prisoners, among others, with French officer Alfred Dreyfus being its most famous inmate.

Over time, the location acquired an additional fearsome reputation: the surrounding waters were described as shark-infested, a detail that only enhanced the island's reputation as a place from which escape attempts were futile.

At the Cebu Provincial Detention and Rehabilitation Center in the Philippines, an entirely different approach to incarceration gained international attention through an unusual activity: mass inmate dance performances.

The dancing began as part of a physical exercise and rehabilitation program, with hundreds of inmates training together on coordinated choreography. But in 2007, everything changed when a video was posted online showing the prisoners performing together to Michael Jackson's "Thriller."

The video became an internet sensation, accumulating millions of views and transforming the "dancing inmates of Cebu" into an international phenomenon.

At Santa Rita do Sapucaí prison in Brazil, officials developed a particularly creative way to combine physical activity, community contribution, and sentence reduction.

Under a program implemented at the facility, inmates volunteered to pedal stationary bicycles connected to an electricity generation system. The energy collected by the bikes was transferred to batteries that powered street lighting in the nearby town.

Participants had a significant incentive: for every three days of eight-hour pedaling shifts, they could reduce their sentence by one day.

In Austria, the Justice Center Leoben, completed in 2004, features a detention facility that looks nothing like the traditional image of a prison.

The complex was designed according to a philosophy that even behind bars, living conditions should resemble normal life as much as possible. Detention units were designed almost like shared apartments, with kitchenettes, seating areas, exercise facilities, and balconies. The complex also includes sports facilities and a rooftop walking garden.

The goal is not to turn incarceration into a vacation, but to use the environment and daily routine as part of the inmates' rehabilitation process.

From isolated islands where escape was nearly impossible, through hundreds of inmates dancing in unison, to exercise bikes that shorten sentences—prisons around the world have found various and unusual ways to address incarceration and rehabilitation over the years.

After reviewing these unconventional correctional facilities, does Israel's crocodile moat proposal seem somewhat less extraordinary?