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Stop whipping inmates, prison wardens ordered
2007-03-07 09:13:55
By Guardian Reporter, Zanzibar
The West Urban regional court in Zanzibar has warned prison wardens in the Isles to stop beating inmates.
The warning was given by Magistrate George Joseph Kazi following reported serious wounds to remandees believed to have been caused by prison warders.
Kazi said must warders respect the human rights the remandees deserve instead of breaking the law.
The court order comes after suspect Michel Petro Alius (40) complained before the court that he had a head injury after he was beaten by prison warders at Kiinua Miguu.
The suspect told the court that he was tied with a plaster to enable more than four warders to rough him up.
He told the court that one of the warders lifted a piece of timber and hit him on the head, causing him to bleed profusely.
Besides beating him, the warders also stripped him naked, he complained.
Following Alius`s complaints, the magistrate ordered the prison`s leadership to appear in court to answer the charges.
Testifying before the court, the leader from the Kiinua Miguu Prison, SP Juma Omar Kondo, admitted that the incident took place.
But he said the injury that Alius sustained, was caused by a nail in the wall that he hit as the warders tried stop him from fighting them.
The prison leader said warders were forced to use additional force after establishing that the remandee could cause more problems in the prison.
Alius, alongside Zubeir Omar Kirimbo (40) appeared in court to answer charges of being found in illegal possession of a sub-machine gun.
They were allegedly arrested with SMG number 938 with 72 rounds of ammunition stacked in three magazines on April 6, 2006 at Malindi Street in Unguja.The case comes up for mention on Friday.
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