By Evans Dakwa, News Editor
Harare-The Zimbabwe Human Rights Commission (ZHRC) has flagged the country’s prison system for abusing the rights of inmates held in the country’s prisons especially in cases were inmates are linked to cases of political interest.
The Commission issued out a statement after its fact finding mission to “ascertain and verify facts following concerns over prolonged detention of inmates arrested for politically sensitive cases”, with cited cases including that of journalist Blessed Mhlanga and the 94 detainees arrested for the Geza called March 31 protests.
The visit by the ZHRC led by its Chairperson Ms Fungayi Jessie Majome highlighted flagrant abuse of prisoners rights including the prolonged pretrial detention when bail is aright and inhumane conditions prisoners are exposed to.
“Many detainees, including Mr. Blessed Mhlanga, have faced excessive delays in their legal proceedings, raising serious concerns regarding their rights to a fair trialInmates held in cases of political interest suffered prolonged pre – trial detention in violation of the right not to be detained without trial, and to be released on bail unless there are compelling reasons justifying such detention” highlighted the Commission.
“Some of the inmates reported significant violations of their rights to education and healthcare. Mhlanga, a first-year law student, and another University of Zimbabwe Economics student were denied the opportunity to sit for their examinations while in custody.”
Concern was also raised over the prison conditions with the Commission saying,” The inmates experienced inhumane living conditions mostly due to overcrowding. Prison cells designed for 35 inmates were holding more than 80, leading to unsanitary and degrading living conditions.”
Police brutality Al’s came to the fore with many detainees flagging the police for abuse during their arrests including physical violence and theft of personal belongongs.
The commission has thus urged authorities to act in dealing with the issues raised and ensure, “prioritization of urgent bail applications since bail is a right to be enjoyed by all, unless there are compelling reasons justifying continued detention;onduct thorough investigations into allegations of police misconduct and ensure accountability for any abuses;Improve prison conditions, reduce the crowding, restore communication facilities, and ensure access to adequate medical care for all detainees.”
They also called for prison authorities to collaborate with the University of Zimbabwe and other learning institutions to facilitate educational opportunities for inmates and desist from imprisonment of irregular migrants whose issues should be handled without resorting to indefinite detention.
The issues uncovered by the ZHRC laid bare the deficiencies of the country’s prison and correctional facilities some of which have long been in the public domain, with authorities doing little to address the challenges minus the presidential pardon system that regularly help in decongesting Prisons. Conditions of our prison system have led to some activists calling it punitive and condemning rather than correctional even though there have been some success stories recorded.