> The warden actually talked about this and said they specifically organize their prisoners into as diverse blocks as possible to avoid any sort of gangs/groupings from starting. He claimed it made the prison significantly safer, as everyone was looking out for only their own wellbeing. The prison was safe enough for us to walk around among the prisoners (who were not cuffed or restrained in anyway), so I think it was working quite well for them.

I'd be careful reading too much into that. Wardens in the US would say the exact same thing; the actual effects of it obviously don't bear out. As for being handcuffed or restrained: in most prisons in the US, prisoners generally aren't actually cuffed or restrained unless they're being punished.