10 children serving jail time

TUYEIMO HAIDULAOSHAKATINamibia currently has 10 children serving jail time. The youngest juvenile offender is 14 and was convicted of rape. He was sentenced to five years in prison.He is serving his term at E. Shikongo Correctional Facility at Tsumeb in the Oshikoto Region.The oldest is 17 and is detained at the same facility. He was sentenced for housebreaking with intent to steal.Four of the juvenile offenders were convicted of rape. Other offences committed by these 10 boys and one girl include robbery, corruption, escape, illegal entry into Namibia, illegal hunting of protected game, and housebreaking. A 16-year-old accused of two rape charges is being kept at Oluno Correctional Facility in Ondangwa awaiting trial.The most recent incident was that of a nine-year-old accused of stabbing his cousin, Beverly Kazembua Muhenje (11), to death at their home at Eenkondombali in the Omusati Region.Legal procedureNamibian Sun spoke to officials of the gender and child welfare ministry and the correctional service to find out what happens to these young offenders.Spokesperson of the gender ministry Lukas Haufiku says many adolescents are not developmentally and intellectually mature enough to be legally competent to stand trial, so the Namibian government focuses on rehabilitating them and if all fails, they are handed over to the authorities for punishment.Haufiku says the child welfare ministry is informed when a child has been arrested.“A social worker is assigned to the accused to do screening (investigation) of the child's circumstances. After the assessment, recommendations are made to the court. The social worker is guided among other criteria if the child a first offender, repeat offender, age, schedule of offences before a decision is made.”The social workers then recommend to the prosecutor-general's office whether the child should be prosecuted or not.Once the prosecutor-general's office has made a decision, the child is given pre-trial community service, or enrolled in a life skills programme, or both. The social workers at the gender-based violence police units are responsible for the assessment of children at the courts, and for providing supervision for pre-trial community service.“Based on that, the social worker is able to recommend an appropriate diversion programme which is in the best interest of the child. Programmes such as life skills, community service, in custody of parent or guardian, opening of children's court inquiry. All these options go hand in hand with counselling services,” Haufiku says. Last resort Commissioner Sam Shaalulange of the Namibian Correctional Service told Namibian Sun last month that incarceration of juveniles is the last resort.Shaalulange said although Namibia does not have a dedicated juvenile correctional facility, young offenders do not mix with adults.This means children in pre-trial detention are kept in custody in police cells, in the absence of other custodial facilities, if they are not r released into the care of parents or guardians or on bail.He said initially the country had built a juvenile detention centre - Elizabeth Nepemba Correctional Facility in Kavango West - but the number of juvenile offenders was so low that it didn't warrant having an entire prison set aside for them. He also said that many juveniles who commit crimes are street children who do not come from good homes. After sentencing, Shaalulange said the correctional service makes sure the young offenders do not come in contact with the older convicts.“We handle them very sensitively. They are treated as a special vulnerable offender category and are kept away from adult offenders,” he said. - tuyeimo@namibiansun.com

10 children serving jail time

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Namibian Sun 2025-05-07

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10 children serving jail time

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Namibian Sun 2025-05-07

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