Prison Population The total figure was about 11,000 out of a national population of 16 million. The Ministry of Interior had responsibility for about 5,000 of these inmates while 5,800 were under the authority of the Ministry of Justice. Of the last figure 3,200 were awaiting trial or sentence. 995 people aged between 16 and 21 were in prisons under the Ministry of Justice. These also had 114 females. Exact figures could not be given about foreigners. What was known was that most of the foreign prisoners were in prisons close to the borders of Mozambique like Maninca, Tete and Nyassa. They had been arrested mostly for illegal entry into the country. Overcrowding This was a real problem. Maputo Central Prison, for instance, housed 1,600 prisoners when it was built to accommodate 800. No prison had been built since the sixties, and most of those which existed were old and had neither been rehabilitated nor maintained well. To this was added the problems of the lack of blankets and mattresses. 1 suggested resort to Community Service and speedy trial as ways by which the prisons could be decongested. Open centres in the country side where prisoners could cultivate crops to feed themselves were being considered as a way of dealing with the problem of overcrowding, according to the Director. Ministries of Justice and Interior Generally the Ministry of Interior has responsibility for pre-trial detention while accused persons are transferred to the Ministry of Justice prisons for trial but, specifically the latter's responsibility commenced when a suspect's file was transmitted to the prosecutor by the criminal investigation police. Within each ministry there is a National Department which caters for those in places of custody and detention. Guards under the T\d1 Ministry of Justice ale ∎ of Interior are policemen while those under the t. '2 LI 1,11 prison officers. Remand By law a person who is arrested should not be held in a police cell for more than 48 hours. Suspects may be held in Detention Centres of the Ministry of Interior for a maximum period of 90 days although it may be exceeded, in complex cases or where surety could not be provided, to 2 or several years. to If a magistrate knew that the process would last more than 90 days she could grant bail. Judicial Process The courts are notorious for being slow. Many more judges and magistrates are needed than exist with the result that a magistrate, for instance, may find herself with responsibility for several sections instead of one. Health Prisons under the Ministry of Justice have Health Centres with nurses or paramedics. Inmates who are sick are treated in the health centres of the prisons by a medical officer or nurse twice, or thrice a week. Serious cases as well as those requiring specialized attention are referred to hospitals. The health centres de net have sufficient medicine. DiwiNine United Nations Standard Minimum Rules for the treatment of offenders are observed. National rules on the subject are in conformity with the U.N. Rules. Corporal punishment is outlawed. Prisoners are disciplined for infringement of regulations by being confined to cells but they are not to be given any inhuman or degrading treatment. The policy is that there should be no more punishment than the deprivation of liberty itself. Arbitrary punishment and disciplinary diet are outlawed. Disappearances This phenomenon is unheard of in the Ministry of Justice prisons. They occur in institutions under the Ministry of Interior, and they result from the escape of detainees from police stations where suspects can be kept for up to 48 hours. Juveniles A person under the age of 16 is not responsible in criminal law for his action. Parents or guardians must prove the age of such a person, and he/she would be released to them. The problem is that some parents do not want their children to be released to them, and do not, therefore, present the necessary documents to establish their age. There is no specialised rehabilitation Centres to accommodate juveniles. As a result of overcrowding it has not been possible to separate young persons from the old. 11