KEETMANSHOOP – More than half of the close to 9 000 sentenced and trial-awaiting prisoners in Namibia are charged with or convicted of petty offences.
This results in unnecessary overcrowding of prisons and holding cells, costing the taxpayer thousands of dollars. Minister of Safety and Security Peter Tsheehama made these observations when he addressed senior Police officers in the Karas Region late last week.Tsheehama said his Ministry was formulating a regulation that would result in community service orders issued to people convicted of petty offences.Petty offenders are those serving jail sentences of less than six months.The minister said only about 14 per cent of prisoners in the country were hardcore criminals.He said the current situation resulted in hardcore criminals corrupting petty offenders that are imprisoned with them.Tsheehama added that the introduction of community service would save Government money while petty offenders might be rehabilitated quickly rather than turning into real criminals in jail.- NampaMinister of Safety and Security Peter Tsheehama made these observations when he addressed senior Police officers in the Karas Region late last week.Tsheehama said his Ministry was formulating a regulation that would result in community service orders issued to people convicted of petty offences.Petty offenders are those serving jail sentences of less than six months.The minister said only about 14 per cent of prisoners in the country were hardcore criminals.He said the current situation resulted in hardcore criminals corrupting petty offenders that are imprisoned with them.Tsheehama added that the introduction of community service would save Government money while petty offenders might be rehabilitated quickly rather than turning into real criminals in jail.- Nampa
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