Successful volunteers will experience real prison conditions between March 24 and 27. Inmates will have to surrender electronic devices, including mobile phones, and will be offered halal, vegetarian or meat menus. Strip searches on arrival are optional and successful applicants cannot transfer their ‘get into jail’ pass to anyone else.
The cantonal authorities came up with the unusual idea to give the facility and staff a test run before the prison starts taking real inmates in April. Some of the wardens and other staff have been newly recruited.
The deadline for volunteering as an inmate expires later this month. But Le Temps newspaper reports that the number of applications from people living in the canton is already nearly three times the capacity of the prison.
Prison director Marc Eiermann told the newspaper that volunteers should not expect a “holiday camp” but would be free to leave at any time.
He added that the pilot project should be a good way of “ensuring the proper functioning of daily operations and allowing wardens to familiarise themselves with the facility”.
The project is only open to adults living in canton Zurich and applicants must agree to background checks to check their suitability to participate.
The new Zurich West prison was built partly to alleviate criticism of conditions for remand prisoners in the canton.
Popular Stories
More
Climate adaptation
Why Switzerland is among the ten fastest-warming countries in the world
Has your continent reached its peak or is there still potential for economic growth?
Some regions of the world are on an upward trajectory with the promise of a steadily improving future. Where do you live? And in which direction is your region or continent developing?
Female gorillas prevent inbreeding by avoiding groups with male relatives
This content was published on
Female gorillas do not change groups randomly. They avoid the males they grew up with, thus preventing inbreeding, according to a study by the University of Zurich.
Chinese cryptocurrency exchange Jucoin to set up Swiss offshoot
This content was published on
Zug's Crypto Valley is getting a new addition. The Chinese cryptocurrency exchange Jucoin will set up its European headquarters in Baar, as the company announced on Wednesday.
Natural disasters lead to second most expensive half-year for insurers
This content was published on
The wildfires in California and storm damage have led to the second most expensive first half of the year ever for the insurance industry.
Detainees in Swiss prisons at lowest level in a decade
This content was published on
Statisticians say the fall in numbers could be linked to Covid-19 restrictions, but that longer term trends still need to confirm this.
Prisoners in Switzerland stay behind bars despite coronavirus
This content was published on
France and the US have decided to release inmates as a measure to prevent the spread of coronavirus in prisons - not so in Switzerland.
This content was published on
Almost three-quarters of all detainees in Swiss prisons are of foreign origin, a study shows. An analysis of the factors behind the numbers.
You can find an overview of ongoing debates with our journalists here . Please join us!
If you want to start a conversation about a topic raised in this article or want to report factual errors, email us at english@swissinfo.ch.