21 Jun 2015

Members of Ntlo ya Dikgosi have embraced government’s plan to enforce community service as an alternative to imprisonment, saying it will reduce overcrowding in prisons.

The chiefs communicated their position during a ministerial briefing of Ntlo ya Dikgosi by acting permanent secretary in the Ministry of Defence, Justice and Security, Mr Augustine Makgonatsotlhe and a consultant from the Commonwealth Secretariat ,Mr Peter Pursglove during the ongoing sitting of the house.

Specially-elected member, Kgosi Isaac Titus, said the decision to engage convicts sentenced to less than one year imprisonment terms in community service will, among others, limit the imprisonment of women who take care of their families.

Kgosi Titus also said the move would further save convicted men and women from not only paying fines but will afford them an opportunity to serve their punishment without separating from their families.

Earlier on, Mr Pursglove revealed that under the new arrangement, convicts will not serve community service under the supervision of prison officers or have a prison record. 

He said they will also not have prison stigma, noting that they can also serve their community without necessarily losing their jobs if they are working. 

He also said sending someone to prison to serve a term less than a year is not helpful as in most cases the convict will not learn anything beneficial because of the limited stay. Meanwhile, the department is also coming up with a Sentencing Council of Botswana, which will draw its attention to overseeing and coordinating the sentencing policy, the need for information and data support in sentencing decisions and the need for ongoing evaluation of the sentencing policy.

He also said that a Sentencing Council will complement the work of the Court of Appeal and further coordinate the sentencing policy from all three branches of the government. ENDS