Visiting the Mochudi Prisons on Thursday, Assistant Minister of Justice and Correctional Services, Mr Augustine Nyatanga said through the Bill, the Botswana Prison Service would be transformed into a modern Correctional Service. 

In that regard, he called on officers to have an input in the draft Bill, whose objective he explained would be to focus on rehabilitation and re-integration as well as on the potential to permit unionisation by staff.

“The intention is to shift from traditional prison systems to correctional services that will be more focused on rehabilitation,” he said.

Mr Nyatanga also encouraged officers to ramp up the implementation of the Offender Rehabilitation and Reintegration Path (ORREP) as a strategic framework designed to shift the focus from punitive incarceration to rehabilitation and successful reintegration into society.

Regarding staff welfare issues, he said part of the reforms that come with the Bill would be to allow prison officers to unionise, adding that they would be in a better position to bargain better for improved working conditions including rebranding of the Prisons Service.

He implored staff to do their best under the prevailing circumstances of shortage of staff housing and slow progression, adding that so far he was impressed about conduct of Mochudi Prisons staff.

Mr Nyatanga also commended them for zero escape incidents over the past eight years, adding that their records were orderly and that they were maintaining a clean environment.

On other issues, he called on the staff to consider contributing to the national economy through production of food and the marketing and sale of different artistic products produced by inmates.

While interacting with inmates, he said government was working hard to push the backlog of cases and improving turnaround times of disposing of cases.

For their part, inmates complained about welfare issues ranging from violation of their rights, denial of bail, overcrowding, poor nutrition and mental health issues.

Meanwhile Commissioner of Botswana Prisons Services, Mr Anthony Mokento said there were 4 394 inmates across all the facilities, a figure that included juvenile offenders. ENDS