PROTECTIVE BELT

In the early days of the Convict Establishment it was not uncommon for convicts to be sentenced to forms of corporal punishment for breaches of discipline. A certain number of lashes could be imposed as part of a convict’s initial conviction sentence, or for misbehaviour conducted whilst inside prison, such as insubordination. The most serious offence was attempting to, or successfully, escaping from legal custody.

A prisoner who had been sentenced to flogging was secured to the flogging triangle, with their legs tied to the base of the frame and their hands to the top. Their back was stripped bare and a protective leather belt was fastened around their upper waist to protect their kidneys, whilst a second could be strapped around the convict’s neck to protect their arteries. The belts were in place to prevent serious internal injury, or even death, to the convict during their punishment. Continual flogging caused the skin to break and open, and without the belt on the back this could cause serious bruising or bleeding to the kidneys and other internal organs. Meanwhile the neck strap was in place to protect the main arteries in the neck from being lacerated.

Depending on the sentence, a convict could be flogged up to 100 times. A medical officer was always present at every flogging and could intervene and cease the punishment if he felt the prisoner’s life was in danger. If a flogging was stopped prematurely for such a reason, the remaining lashes would be administered after the prisoner had sufficiently recovered.

The last flogging was administered at Fremantle Prison at 9am on 21 June 1943 when a prisoner convicted of rape received 25 lashes as part of his original sentence. The medical officer suspended the punishment after 17 strokes.

Corporal punishment and hard labour were officially abolished in Western Australia under the Criminal Law Amendment Act (No. 2) 1992, effective from 6 January 1993.

Protective belts such as these were also used at the Convict Establishment as a remedy against injury for convicts undertaking hard physical labour as part of their punishment. One such example would be to strap the thick leather belt around the convict’s waist, to help support their back from strain while they were undertaking heavy manual work, such as carrying or hauling rocks.