US$8M project to tackle prison overcrowding

— to be launched Monday

THE Legal Affairs Ministry will on Monday launch a US$8 million project funded by the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) to tackle overcrowding at local prison facilities.

The programme that will provide support for the criminal justice system as it moves ahead to reduce the number of pre-trial detentions of prisoners, while increasing use of alternative sentencing, (outside of jail time) will be launched at the Marriott Hotel.

Guyana’s prison population stands at 256 per 100,000, well above the world average of 146 per 100,000.

The high rates of imprisonment have been associated with a host of negative factors, including difficulties in former prisoners securing employment and some returning to a life of crime

The project is divided into two components. The first component seeks to reduce the use of pre-trial detention, especially for individuals accused of minor offences.

The idea is to provide better legal assistance to individuals accused of non-violent offences, improve t prosecutors’ ability to handle cases according to the seriousness of the offence, strengthen the judiciary, and design and implement a restorative justice programme.

The second component seeks to increase the use of alternative sentencing by the criminal justice system in Guyana. This includes strengthening the country’s legal drafting functions, modernising probation services and implementing a pilot project at the Magistrate Court level to apply alternatives to imprisonment of non-violent offenders.

The programme is designed to complement a previously approved citizen security programme targeting high-crime neighbourhoods.

Four million of the eight million dollars allocated to the project is financed via the IDB’s ordinary capital, has a 30-year amortisation period and an interest rate based on Libor. The remaining $4 million is through the IDB’s subsidised lending arm. It has a 40-year amortisation period and a fixed interest rate of 0.25 per cent.

Last year, the pressure of overcrowding had caused a major commotion at the Camp Street Prison, the country’s most prominent holding facility located in the heart of the city.

Some 17 detainees were killed at the prison when they set mattresses on fire, protesting what they described as inhumane conditions at the facility.

The prisoners had complained about their food, the overcrowding and the length of time it was taking to have their matters heard.

The Camp Street incident had forced the government to immediately draft up measures to address the long prevailing issue of overcrowded prisons.