By Taban Gabriel
King News 23rd Sept 2024. The Committee for Human Rights and Humanitarian Affairs at the Transitional National Legislative Assembly (TNLA) has on Monday shared with lawmakers reports about the status of prisons in Juba County following a courtesy visit to the cells.
A recent memo revealed that over 200 inmates at Juba Central Prison are on death row, awaiting prosecution for capital offenses, with 99% of them being young people. Presenting the report to the chairperson of the Committee for Human Rights and Humanitarian Affairs in parliament, Dr. William Othwonth described the conditions in prison as “dire.”
In the comprehensive statement, Dr. William noted with concerns the issues of hygiene and inadequate space to accommodate inmates as “some of the human rights issues”
“Right, Honorable Speaker, honorable members, on 24th May 2024, the committee visited the Northern Police Division and Malakia police station. The situations in these custodies are worst,” Dr. William explained
“First of all, the custodies were built during the colonial period; the buildings are very old and. The cells are few, in which the juveniles are mixed up with the adults and are extremely very dirty, those in detention are squeezing themselves in a very small rooms” he continued
Dr William Othwonth reads the report on the status of prisons (Photo credit. Taban Gabriel, King News
Dr William, in his statement, asserted that the facility at Juba Central Prison accommodates up to 2,126 inmates, surpassing the initial recommended capacity of 500 inmates.
“At the juvenile ward alone, there is 301 children between the age of 8 up to 17 years, 226 of these kids are on remand and 75 being convicted, these are the future generations of this nation,” he said
The memo also brought to light issues of judicial errors in legal redress to inmates and “lack of renewal of detention warrants by prosecutors which led to accumulations of over 1,631 remands”
“In Malakia Police custody, there is an accused who is detained for over six months. I asked them yesterday, and he is still there, six months without any steps taken to bring him into the book of law for the alleged crime committed,” he described
Some of the recommendations by the committee includes transfer of inmates to states prisons “where they can engage in agricultural activities”, creation of separates wards for inmates with contagious diseases and revocation of some of the verdicts.
While reacting to the report, Lawmaker Victor Omuho from Eastern Equatoria State call for a summon of the Ministers of Interior and Minister of Justice “because this report is very important and they must listen to us when we are talking”
“I am suggesting that, if there is no budget tomorrow, this report must be retabled tomorrow with the presence of these people because this thing is very important. By the way, there is one thing that they have not mentioned, people are dying in those prisons, and they are killing some of them, so we want them here, the Ministry of Interior, the Inspector General, the Minister of Justice. So that he can come and listen to the members of the parliament” he said as members of the house clap for him
“I support that the three Ministers and Minister of Justice and the others including Minister of Gender and Social Welfare are to be here so that they can listen to us, thank you” Lawmaker James Kueth Chuol from Nasir seconded
Upon confirmation, the speaker of parliament Jemma Nunu Kumba passed the motion for the summon as she closed the deliberation over the report.
In South Sudan, the Penal Code provides for the use of the death penalty for murder. Hanging is the method of execution provided for in the Code of Criminal Procedure. Before a person sentenced to death can be executed, the Supreme Court and the President must confirm the death sentence.