�Prisons did not err� - rules Ombudsman

Tefo Pheage | Wednesday January 13, 2016 15:18

In their annual report, the Ombudsman stated that it  did not find any maladministration on the side of the authorities as the prisoner did not follow procedure of appealing to the Attorney General. The inmate had reported prisons service to the Ombudsman after he was denied permission or what is known as temporary release to bury his mother.

The inmate had said the prison’s decision caused him emotional harm by the refusal and wanted the Ombudsman to investigate what he perceived as gruesome denial.

According to Section 48 of the Prisons Act, the commissioner or in emergency situations, the officer-in-charge, may grant an inmate temporary release to  visit a dying relative or to attend the funeral of a relative. The Ombudsman said they probed the matter and sent correspondences to the prisons department and were told that, “the prisoner failed to comply with procedure, considering also his sentence  duration.

“Prisoners have a right to bury their close family members, but this may vary depending on their conduct. The prisoner could only be released to attend the funeral with the consent of the Attorney General, according to the authorities. Section 48 of the Prisons Act states that in the case of inmates who are serious offenders like murderers or any serious offence, which carries a prison sentence of 14 years or more, the consent of the Attorney General is required before such an inmate may be permitted to benefit from temporary release.

“The Act further advises that during such a release, the prisoner shall at all times be escorted by a prison officer.

“Furthermore, release in prisons often relies heavily on a variety of factors such as the nature and circumstances of the crime committed, attitude towards rehabilitation, behaviour while in prison and often family and the general background.

“The prisons service is one of the most cooperative government institutions as they acknowledge reciept of Ombudsman’s correspondences within a month and resolve issues within two months, unlike other institutions whose average turnaround time can be 33 months,” said the Ombudsman.

Apparently, the Ombudsman occasionally received a series of complaints from prisoners, according to the report.

“Prisoner complaints account for a sizeable number of complaints, most of which are centred around human rights issues such as loss of property/belongings, denied or delayed medical care even for citizen prisoners on ARVs in certain isolated instances,” Ombudsman stated.