17 16 Zimbabwe Association for Crime Prevention and Rehabilitation (ZACRO) It was registered as a charitable institution in 1968 with branches throughout the country. ZACRO works closely with the Police and Prison administration. It aims at the rehabilitation of the offender and the prevention of crime. ZACRO involves the community and individuals in the pursuit of its objectives. It also targets the youth, and organises street boys to sew and learn how to make soap. Thereafter they are placed in commercial entities. Those taught these trades are either ex or non-offenders. In schools, ZACRO is concerned about drug and alcohol abuse. ZACRO passes on to governments complaints of prisoners. A noticeable change for the better resulted from making government aware of maltreatment by prison officers of those awaiting trial as well as convicts. Poor quality plates were also replaced about 5 years ago when ZACRO brought it to government's attention. ZACRO also claimed some credit for the extension of vocational training from male to female prisoners. Prisons talk, the law versus the practice, a report on prison conditions in Zimbabwe by the Catholic Commission for Justice and Peace in Zimbabwe 1 came across this work in the course of my study. Although undated since work published in 1992 is cited in it, the report must have been prepared in or after that date. A very frank and critical report, it states the prison population as 22,600 at the time of writing. It lists 41 prisons and refers to Bulawayo Prison to underscore the problem of overcrowding. Built to accommodate 445 prisoners on the occasion of the author(s) visit there were 758 inmates. Problems Officials of the Prison Service found overcrowding to be a problem. Consequently a judicial sentencing conference was held in 1996 to consider alternatives to imprisonment. The perennial problem of limited financial resources was also stated. While food and toiletries were available, replacement of equipment in workshops, and the building of more workshops, are beyond the means of the Prisons, a direct result of the financial constraints on the nation. Sources outside official circles viewed the staying of children with their mothers throughout their sentences in prison as a serious problem. The problem is exacerbated by the fact that the immediate families are reluctant to take on the children of a convict, even if closely related to them. Some were of the view that the training of prison officers was too security oriented, and that the training should concentrate on rehabilitation. The Prison Administration Manual has to be revised for more humane provisions. Illustration of a regulation that ought to be amended for the better is the 20 minutes per month visit a prisoner is entitled to, or the one page letter per month which is the limit for a prisoner. Attempts should also be made to replicate the workshop at Harare at other prisons. To encourage society to accept convicts who are released, and to illustrate that rehabilitation of prisoners can be achieved, the Prison Administration should begin to employ ex-convicts who have acquired skills in prison. Conclusion For me to be able to visit the prisons in Zimbabwe that I did at a very short notice and for the author(s) of PRISONS TALK to have access to all the prisons in Zimbabwe speak volumes of the openness of the penal regime in Zimbabwe. The novel institution of community service will no doubt have an impact on overcrowding in prisons. That others beyond Africa, in Asia and the Americas will look to Zimbabwe for reform of that penal system is reason for satisfaction and justifiable pride. Equally, co-operation between governmental and non-governmental organisations towards a more humane prison regime is worthy of commendation. For this very reason, criticisms from the latter must be taken seriously.