Minister of Justice (iii)On December 17, the Minister of Justice granted me audience. He welcomed my mission, and saw it as an opportunity to learn more about the African Commission on Human and People's Rights. It also provided an occasion to consider further necessary improvement in human rights. He stated that it is difficult to protect human rights in poor countries such as Mozambique because the general population itself suffer and do not have sufficient food. In this connection it is not easy to ensure that minimum standards are implemented in pnsons. Prisons in Gaza province and others in the countryside, outside the big cities are more open than those in Maputo which are overcrowded. Prisons in Gaza provide 3 meals a day for inmates while in Maputo it is one meal a day. The former produce part of their own food. When there are too many prisoners, the services provided by the administration become inadequate, and prison conditions can deteriorate very quickly. contributory factor. Prisons built in colonial times cannot accommodate prisoners of a highly increased population. The war added to the problem. For instance, Mabalame prison situated on 60 acres of land in Gaza province, produced food for itself and other prisons, but it was destroyed during the war. Prison Personnel Lack of training for them does not make for or ensure respect of human rights. In conclusion, the Minister saw lack of resources as the main reason why the government could not improve the conditions of imprisonment and detention. He also observed that the Commission was doing a good job in trying to protect human rights. Mozambique, he promised, would also do more to improve upon the situation. Judicial Process and Lawyers The slow court process account, pm tly for the overcrowding and related problems. There are far fewer nitl.te, than what is needed. To take his own experience, when the Minister \‘..1, the Chief Judge in Sofala, 4 judges served under him. Only two of these were trained lawyers, the other two had only rudimentary instruction in law. In the provinces there are judges who have had only one year training. The minister was also one of the first graduates of the Faculty of Law, which was established in 1975, and even before completing his degree he worked in the courts. Few nationals had the opportunity to study law in Portugal before lawyers started to be trained in Mozambique. Moreover locally trained lawyers prefer to work with pnvate companies than in the courts. Prosecutors are also in short supply. There is the need for 2 graduates in law in each court but in most courts there is not even one. Most of the court personnel had one year basic training. Graduates are concentrated in Maputo. Lawyers in the provinces, some of whom give legal aid, have had only one year training. But against the foregoing background provision of legal aid by government is a real problem. Overcrowding Although the weak judicial process contributes to this problem, the inability of government as a result of lack of means to construct more prisons is also a 12 i3