Security forces asked to respect detainee rights
Oct 14, 2008
THE attitude by security forces that prisoners have no rights must change if conditions in detention centres are to improve, a senior Police chief has said.
By Ben Okiror
THE attitude by security forces that prisoners have no rights must change if conditions in detention centres are to improve, a senior Police chief has said.
John Kamya, the assistant Police commissioner in charge of training, urged security personnel to balance law enforcement with observance of human rights.
He was presenting a paper on the rights of inmates at the Imperial Royale Hotel in Kampala last Friday.
“We have about 15,000 officers who joined Police before human rights were introduced into the curriculum,†he said. “Most of them are now senior officers but do not have an idea that detainees have rights. They feel suspects can sleep on the floor, do not need to bathe and can eat once a day or not.â€
Kamya said since he joined the force 15 years ago, cells have been provided with beds or mattresses.
“Inmates often sleep on floors with the basic bedding being a papyrus mat or torn blanket,†he said. “These are provided by the inmates but sometimes they are rejected and detainees allowed only jackets. Even good food like beef or chicken is turned away just because one is a prisoner.â€
Kamya recalled an incident in Fort Portal where a former local administration Police officer said she did not know it was wrong to torture suspects in order to extract information from them.
He urged unit commanders to supervise cells to ensure detainees are fine and called for separation of hardcore detainees from minor offenders. He also asked security personnel not to keep inmates in detention for long, saying it encourages them to mistreat new inmates.
Kamya called for an annual forum where conditions of inmates are reviewed and recommendations by different stakeholders discussed.
THE attitude by security forces that prisoners have no rights must change if conditions in detention centres are to improve, a senior Police chief has said.
John Kamya, the assistant Police commissioner in charge of training, urged security personnel to balance law enforcement with observance of human rights.
He was presenting a paper on the rights of inmates at the Imperial Royale Hotel in Kampala last Friday.
“We have about 15,000 officers who joined Police before human rights were introduced into the curriculum,†he said. “Most of them are now senior officers but do not have an idea that detainees have rights. They feel suspects can sleep on the floor, do not need to bathe and can eat once a day or not.â€
Kamya said since he joined the force 15 years ago, cells have been provided with beds or mattresses.
“Inmates often sleep on floors with the basic bedding being a papyrus mat or torn blanket,†he said. “These are provided by the inmates but sometimes they are rejected and detainees allowed only jackets. Even good food like beef or chicken is turned away just because one is a prisoner.â€
Kamya recalled an incident in Fort Portal where a former local administration Police officer said she did not know it was wrong to torture suspects in order to extract information from them.
He urged unit commanders to supervise cells to ensure detainees are fine and called for separation of hardcore detainees from minor offenders. He also asked security personnel not to keep inmates in detention for long, saying it encourages them to mistreat new inmates.
Kamya called for an annual forum where conditions of inmates are reviewed and recommendations by different stakeholders discussed.