Time To Do Something About Repeated Reports

Revelations this week of the hellish state of Namibian Police holding cells are nothing new.

There have been a number of reports in this regard in recent years, notably with regard to the state of the country’s prisons, and the latest simply serves to illustrate that nothing has been done, and that conditions have deteriorated further. There are those who would argue that jails and holding cells are not a priority, that they in any case house those members of society who have transgressed laws, and who should therefore be the last to complain about their circumstances.That, however, is no argument against the fact that those who are awaiting trial or serving their sentences still have the right to be kept in an environment that is clean and not overcrowded, for health and safety’s sake as well.Those who are awaiting trial are in any case people who are presumed innocent until proven guilty, and it is unacceptable that they should be held in conditions where their personal safety and health are put in jeopardy.Worse still is the fact that minors are sometimes jailed with adults, and as a result, are sometimes used as ‘sex slaves’.(Our front-page report on February 22 about the jailing of two San girls aged 15 and 17 is a case in point).This emerged from a report of a visit by a committee of the National Council that conducted a recent fact-finding mission to 12 regions of the country.Their report came on the heels of a similar initiative by the Office of the Ombudsman, which also found horrific circumstances the order of the day.These included generally filthy conditions, with serious overcrowding, broken toilets, disintegrating walls, and of course the infestations of lice and other health hazards that result from abovementioned.The National Council committee found conditions generally ‘inhumane’, and added that several trial-awaiting prisoners had been kept in holding cells for prolonged periods.They reported a lack of cleaning materials, which added to the filth of these places, and even worse, these conditions were found in all 12 of the regions visited, the National Council Committee added.They encouraged the Ministers of Justice, Safety and Security and the Attorney General to witness such conditions first-hand.The Vice Chairperson of the National Council, Margaret Mensah-Williams, was quite right when she said that answers were needed from those in charge.The situation in the country’s prisons and holding cells, she added, was proof of lack of proper planning and those responsible needed to answer to the investigation’s findings.”We go out there to investigate these things, but our money, Government’s money, the taxpayer’s money, is being wasted if nothing happens afterwards”, she said.”We need to get those responsible to come out and explain themselves”, she said.And indeed, it would be interesting to hear from the Minister of Safety and Security as to how much has been budgeted for the renovation and upgrading of prison facilities, and if so, what was done with the money.We reiterate that this information is not new.There have been several reports and investigations into prison and holding cell conditions for the past few years, all of which cost money.But instead of improvement, further deterioration has set in.It serves no purpose to re-investigate what has already been investigated.Government must now see to it that tangible improvements are brought about as soon as possible.There are those who would argue that jails and holding cells are not a priority, that they in any case house those members of society who have transgressed laws, and who should therefore be the last to complain about their circumstances.That, however, is no argument against the fact that those who are awaiting trial or serving their sentences still have the right to be kept in an environment that is clean and not overcrowded, for health and safety’s sake as well.Those who are awaiting trial are in any case people who are presumed innocent until proven guilty, and it is unacceptable that they should be held in conditions where their personal safety and health are put in jeopardy.Worse still is the fact that minors are sometimes jailed with adults, and as a result, are sometimes used as ‘sex slaves’.(Our front-page report on February 22 about the jailing of two San girls aged 15 and 17 is a case in point).This emerged from a report of a visit by a committee of the National Council that conducted a recent fact-finding mission to 12 regions of the country.Their report came on the heels of a similar initiative by the Office of the Ombudsman, which also found horrific circumstances the order of the day.These included generally filthy conditions, with serious overcrowding, broken toilets, disintegrating walls, and of course the infestations of lice and other health hazards that result from abovementioned.The National Council committee found conditions generally ‘inhumane’, and added that several trial-awaiting prisoners had been kept in holding cells for prolonged periods.They reported a lack of cleaning materials, which added to the filth of these places, and even worse, these conditions were found in all 12 of the regions visited, the National Council Committee added.They encouraged the Ministers of Justice, Safety and Security and the Attorney General to witness such conditions first-hand.The Vice Chairperson of the National Council, Margaret Mensah-Williams, was quite right when she said that answers were needed from those in charge.The situation in the country’s prisons and holding cells, she added, was proof of lack of proper planning and those responsible needed to answer to the investigation’s findings.”We go out there to investigate these things, but our money, Government’s money, the taxpayer’s money, is being wasted if nothing happens afterwards”, she said.”We need to get those responsible to come out and explain themselves”, she said.And indeed, it would be interesting to hear from the Minister of Safety and Security as to how much has been budgeted for the renovation and upgrading of prison facilities, and if so, what was done with the money.We reiterate that this information is not new.There have been several reports and investigations into prison and holding cell conditions for the past few years, all of which cost money.But instead of improvement, further deterioration has set in.It serves no purpose to re-investigate what has already been investigated.Government must now see to it that tangible improvements are brought about as soon as possible.