Highlights: In the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), the authorities have set up a special commission to try to relieve congestion at the Makala central prison in Kinshasa. While the country's largest prison has more than 15,000 inmates, although it was designed for 1,500. In Makala Central Prison, only a quarter of the inmates are convicts. The overwhelming majority are in preventive detention, some without files, while others have been awaiting their judgment for many months or years.

In the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), the authorities have set up a special commission to try to relieve congestion at the Makala central prison in Kinshasa. While prison matters most...

DRC: Kinshasa does not address the reasons for prison overpopulation, according to civil society

In the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), the authorities have set up a special commission to try to relieve congestion at the Makala central prison in Kinshasa. While the country's largest prison has more than 15,000 inmates, although it was designed for 1,500, the authorities want to decide on releases on a case-by-case basis. But civil society judges that this measure is only cosmetic and does not resolve the substance, because the judiciary says it is not entirely responsible for overpopulation.

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A view of Makala central prison in Kinshasa, DRC (Illustration). © AFP PHOTO / JUNIOR D. KANNAH

By: RFI Follow

With our correspondent in Kinshasa,

Pascal Mulegwa

Makala Central Prison

, only a quarter of the inmates are convicts. The overwhelming majority are in preventive detention, some without files, while others have been awaiting their judgment for many months or years. According to Firmin Mvonde, the prosecutor at the Court of Cassation, the defendants themselves are sometimes at the origin of their prolonged stay in prison: they would request discounts and use delaying tactics during their trial, according to the prosecutor.

The latter does not recognize the existence of detainees without records, which is nevertheless affirmed by several NGOs. According to Jean-Claude Katende,

these detainees

are often thrown in prison by the security services. But for the president of the African Human Rights Association (Asadho), the reasons for prison overcrowding remain multiple: “

There are certain crooked magistrates who consider that certain cases are a business for them and that by sending someone to prison, he will do everything to give money to get them released.

“

They will simply rot in prison
”

“

Unfortunately

,” he said again,

“there are people who are in prison and who have no means of getting out. Another problem is that people are detained for minor acts which can be resolved either by dismissal or by payment of fines. Another cause is the fact that there is no follow-up of cases, especially for people who are poor, people who have no parents to follow up on the case, no lawyer: they will simply rotting in prison.

NGOs also point to fanciful arrests, cases for which the prosecutor has promised sanctions. Associations and the judiciary are in any case in agreement on one point: the slowness of the justice system in pronouncing its judgments contributes to the overpopulation of prisons in the DRC

DRC: Kinshasa does not address the reasons for prison overpopulation, according to civil society

DRC: Kinshasa does not address the reasons for prison overpopulation, according to civil society

“

They will simply rot in prison
”

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DRC: Kinshasa does not address the reasons for prison overpopulation, according to civil society

DRC: Kinshasa does not address the reasons for prison overpopulation, according to civil society

“ They will simply rot in prison ”

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Trends 24h

Latest

“

They will simply rot in prison
”