Centre for Human Rights Education, Advice and Assistance (Chreaa) says it is optimistic that the Prison Services Bill will be taken to Parliament in the 2023/24 financial year.
A statement from the human rights organisation on Wednesday said their optimism is based on President Lazarus Chakwera’s assurance in his State of the Nation Address (Sona) in February this year.
The Prison Services Bill champions the creation of a parole system that will usher in a fairer system for releasing prisoners before completing their sentences. It also establishes prison clinics only available in central and maximum prisons.
The statement states: “Chreaa calls upon members of Parliament to emulate the President by passing the Prison Services Bill into effect.
“Chreaa is hopeful that the government will continue to address prison challenges and ensure that prisoners are treated with dignity and can enjoy their basic human rights.”
In his Sona, Chakwera said he would ensure the Bill is taken to Parliament to reform the country’s prisons.
The Prison Services Bill, if debated by legislators and passed into law by the President, will also introduce community service.
This is basically a reform area aimed at decongesting the country’s prisons which has always been a challenge.
And according to Chreaa, the President’s decision to pardon more prisoners has been a temporary relief in the country’s prison’s decongestion.
The Penal Reform International visited Malawi in 2003 to assist in the drafting of the Bill.
This is anticipated to change the prison framework from an outdated colonial era model adopted in 1956.
The initial Bill was shelved in the late 2000s for not being in line with Malawi’s socio-economic realities. In 2013, a Special Law Commission drafted a revised Bill which was published in 2018.
But since then, the Bill is yet to be debated or passed into law.
Meanwhile, Parliament is scheduled to meet from July 24 2023 to August 18 2023 for the 50th session, according to a notice signed by Speaker of Parliament Catherine Gotani Hara dated July 4 2023.
This will be the second meeting of the National Assembly in the 50th Parliament session.
