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Summary: This survey study report is on juvenile
offenders, both committed and on
remand, in the major Malawi prisons and
approved schoolsThis survey study report is on juvenile offenders, both committed and
on remand, in the major Malawi prisons and approved schools. As its
focus, the study includes the causes of high level of juvenile
deliquency. Other specific areas of focus are the administration of
juvenile justice, types of offences, prisons/reform centres
conditions, access to education as well as development of skills, and
availability of counseling and recreation facilities.
As part of the methodology for the study, interviews were conducted
based on structured as well as unstructured questionnaires. The
target group for the interviews included a sample, of 170 juveniles
from four major prisons in Malawi including Mpemba reform school,
officials from the prisops and the reform school, government
officials from community services and social welfare offices and
human rights activists from NOOs involved in monitoring prison
conditions. The interviews were aimed at obtaining the following
information:
· Categories of juveniles along lines of gender, age, education
level, type of offences, duration of sentence, arrest treatment,
locations and family backgrounds;
· Availability of education/training, recreation, medical and
counseling facilities;
· Legal representation, treatment and conditibns in prisons/reform
centres.
· Suggestions and expectations of juveniles as well as officials from
the prisons and reform schools.
The data was analyzed using dBase IV.
Data on causes for juvenile crime revealed that a majority of up to
67.1% of the juveniles are either from single parents or from
guardians other than parents or were living alone at the time of
arrest. The only logical conclusion from this contrast is that
children/young persons from this group are more likely to commit
crime than those from two-parent homes. In other words among the
causes for the juvenile crime are poverty, broken homes and single
parent homes, homelessness and orphanage. The common factor in all
these situations has to do with either lack or inadequate family care
which to a large extent can t5~ better addressed in two-parent homes.
The survey findings have revealed a number of areas which require
serious redressing. There are issues of "misplaced" juveniles in
terms of exceeding. the legal age limit, the general poor conditions
particularly for those kept in prisons, lack of adequate adherance to
the law when arresting, remanding as well as committing the juveniles
to approved schools. For instance, it was discovered that some
juveniles had stayed in remand awaiting trial for up to four years
without appearing before a magistrate! Some juveniles had already
been committed to approved schools a long time ago but were still
languishing in prison. The major questions being posed at the end is
whether reformation of the juveniles can effectively take place in
such conditions, whether there is a hope of improving the
administration of the juvenile justice given the prevailing
condftions. However, the report recognises the positive socio-
political change which has made it possible to at least have studies
of this nature take place as a move towards the right direction.
In keeping with one of the main objectives of the survey stbdy, the
report has come up with a number of recommendations including the
following:
· Unless the officials charged with the duty to administer juvenile
justice are filly aware of their responsibilities they can not be
expected to discharge their duties accordingly. Therefore, there is
urgent need to organise systematic and appropriate trainings such as
"Rights of the child" for police officials, prisons officials,
magistrates, social welfare people and officials at the approved
schools with a view to raise the understanding of their
responsibilities in handling juveniles. As part of this effort, it
would be essential to prepare a handbook on the Malawi Law on
juveniles for all those involved in its administration.
· As a matter of urgency a networking arrangement should be
instituted between the Board of Visitors, social welfare officials
and prison officials on the one hand and NGOs, churches and the
community on the other hand to ensure that there is a strict
separation of genuine juveniles from adult offenders. The current
practice as established by the survey indicated that either the
categorisation and determination of juveniles is veiy loose or the
legal requirement on segregation is not strictly followed. The
present practice requires immediate redress.
There is a need to strengthen the system of referring minor juvenile
offences to probation officers who should in turn work closely with
respective guardians/parents and communities. This arrangement will
not only reduce cost and overcrowding but also speed up the
reformation process which allows intergration of the juveniles to
take place simultaneously.
As a general recommendation, prisons should be organised into
production institutions for self sustainance in food, fijrniture,
uniforms, etc and if possible be able to raise some revenue by
selling some of their produce. The present arrangement which makes
the prisons fully dependent on~ government and a few donors is
unsustainable. The proposed arrangement will also eliminate the
problem of idleness among inmates.
Most of the recommendations are based on the understanding that the
problems of offenders are more to do with lack of awareness and
improper on itation of the juvenile law, than with the law itself In
addition, the focus is exploring ways and means of coming up with a
sustainable mechanism of mobiising adequate resources needed to
support reformation efforts in all the affected areas including the
approved schools.