News

Benin follows recommendations of Committee Against Torture and passes new Code of Criminal Procedure

The Release Political Prisoners (RPP) Trust, a lobby group, claims to have documented at least 35 cases of extra-judicial killings committed since December 2011.

New Malawi President fires Police Chief

Human rights groups welcomed the decision by Joyce Banda, who succeeded Bingu wa Mutharika on Saturday 7 March after his death from a heart attack.

On 25 March, Clare Ballard wrote an opinion editorial on a case being heard by the North Gauteng High Court, in which the Southern African Litigation Centre (SALC) and the Zimbabwean Exiles Forum have applied for the review of the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) and the South African Police Services' decision not to investigate or prosecute Zimbabwean officials, resident in South Africa from time to time, for alleged act of torture carried out on MDC supporters in March 2007.

Malawi Human Rights Commissioner Arrested, Police Crackdown

John Kapito, the Chairperson of the Malawi Human Rights Commission, was detained on Friday 16 March by eight policemen who accused him of possessing guns, holding seditious meetings and printing seditious T-shirts, which insulted President Bingu wa Mutharika. On Sunday security forces prevented people from attending an opposition meeting, leading to violence.

Plans to decongest Kenyan prisons via clemency

The Kenyan Ministry of Home Affairs has announced proposals to improve prison conditions by decongesting the prisons.

'Mozambique needs more judges'

The President of Mozambique's Supreme Court, Ozias Pondja, on 13 March 2012 said that the country needs to train more judges, since the 293 who currently exist are insufficient to meet the growing pressure on the courts.

Cunene court suffers backlogs, poor infrastucture

Poor court infrastructure is contributing to poor performance of the court system in Cunene, says the presiding judge. The Minister of Justice for Courts has promised improvements this year.