Both domestic and foreign observers have condemned the prison for detaining journalists and non-ruling party politicians en masse, and for allowing executions.

[17] This was later supported by a February 2011 assessment of the prison by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, where the interior of the compound was deemed in need of refurbishment after years of consistent operation.

[6][19] Along with reports of abuse against detainees at the nearby police station, the prison complex as a whole has gained an overall poor reputation regarding its quality and treatment of inmates.

[20] In modern times; the buildings have on multiple occasions been used to hold detainees awaiting trial, who if found guilty, can quickly be sent to the prison proper.

[21] This education was offered to willing inmates for a dual purpose: of giving them a paying profession to prevent poverty and recidivism,[22] and of transferring any profits from the farms and shops to British government departments.

"[21] Despite this, an education program still existed at the prison in some capacity afterwards, as at least juvenile inmates were given "two hours of schooling daily" and were "required to work in the fields.

"[21] Some form of a prison education system still exists today, with the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) sponsoring program since at least 2014.

[22] Whether some of the programs from British rule are still in operation is unknown; because only the teaching of carpentry, welding, and tailoring skills were discussed by the ICRC in a 2016 report.

[22] The prison in recent history has gained a reputation for holding inmates, especially juveniles, for long sentences that often do not match the severity of the crimes committed.

This has led to a growing reliance on paralegals to secure the legal rights of inmates in the prison to an acceleration of their passage through the lengthy criminal justice system.

[21][24] The reverse has taken place recently, with multiple instances of one- to two-year prison sentences being documented for juveniles convicted of the theft of mobile phones.

This was confirmed by the Waddani opposition party leader Abdirahman Mohamed Abdullahi on a visit conducted on 24 November 2022,[26] in which he described the situation as a "gross violation of the detainees' human and civil rights".

[27] The prison throughout its history has been used to hold journalists[19][28] and politicians[29] en masse[30] whose reason for arrest is often only for reporting on unflattering crimes and protests in the nation, or for promoting the opposing parties' beliefs, calling into question the freedom of speech in Somaliland.

[32] The SNM in response issued requests to foreign governments, particularly France, and human rights groups to intervene to improve the situation of those detained, but it is unclear if any significant actions were made.