Prisoners in Zanzibar decry corruption and bias

ISSA YUSSUF in Zanzibar

THE Zanzibar Chief Justice (CJ), Mr Omar Othman Makungu, has made a rare visit to the main Isles prison at Kilimani here, which presented an opportunity for the inmates to present their grievances.

During the short visit to the prison (officially known as reformatory centre), the inmates complained about biasness in presidential pardons, normally during anniversaries, and impact of corruption in judiciary on poor people.

“It is not easy for wealthy people to be imprisoned because they bribe. It is us the poor who are imprisoned because we cannot bribe. Some of us are even innocent, but we have been imprisoned,” the inmates complained, asking the CJ to investigate.

Delays in case hearings was one of the complaints heard from the remanded persons, some of whom claimed to have stayed in jail for years without trial, accusing the police, magistrates and judges for not being fair in prosecution and trial processes.

The nearly 296 inmates including 142 still on remand, 143 male including three children under 18 years and a woman also asked the CJ to convey their message to respective authorities to beg union presidential pardoning powers to be extended to the Islands, and to focus on poor prisoners.

According to the Commissioner of Zanzibar Reformatory Centres, Mr Khalifa Hassan Chum, his office has been improving living conditions of the inmates and that among them, there are 89 prisoners including three waiting for the president’s approval to be hanged to death, while the rest are in remand.

In response to the inmate’s claims, Mr Makungu promised to work on the problems including the alleged corruption in courts, at the same time urging citizens to refrain from giving bribes and to reveal names of court staffs who are corrupt.