HELP…….

He just appeared one day, as everyone did, on the wing.

You never knew what they would be like, but everyone sizes them up, to try take a guess.

He was a slight man, unassuming.

Clean.

No threat, no problem.

After a while it became clear he didn't speak English. I assumed he was one of those folks that just got dumped in prison by immigration, left to wait for the “”powers that be “”to decide his fate.

Most waited a long time.

It was about 2 weeks in, when the trouble started.

He just wouldn't do as he was told. The officers thought that shouting orders in a very loud voice would somehow bridge the language divide. He only knew one word…””help””. it was funny at first, when they wanted him to go back to the cell, to see them almost chase after him, shouting at him, as he just wandered around saying “”help””, in his quiet voice. He would disappear occasionally, taken to solitary, then be back again. He never uttered any other word, never raised his voice.

He drove them mad.

They just didn't know what to do, violence, threats, all this they handled with an ease verging on enjoyment. Thinking back, it was one of the finest displays of disobedience to authority I have ever seen. I don’t know what happened to him, when I was released, he was still there. I caught his eye once, and with a very slight smile, almost imperceptible, he quietly said “”help””, then walked away.