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INTENTION : |
That prisoners, especially the young, may be able to rebuild lives of dignity.
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Prison reality is never pleasant, nevertheless in the Democratic Republic of Congo detention conditions are genuinely appalling, with "overcrowding at 650 percent, serious difficulty in accessing health care, deplorable sanitary conditions, prisoners with no toilet facilities and malnutrition increasingly a chronic problem", as reported by the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC). However, within these terrible conditions, there is an even sadder and more shameful reality, the situation of young offenders serving time in these surroundings.
The vibrant call from Pope Francis this month for these juvenile prisoners, that they may be able to reconstruct their lives with dignity, invites us to reflect upon the causes of this unacceptable situation. Within prison walls the opposite to rehabilitation occurs, prisons are schools where inmates learn more about criminal activities and delinquency and detainees become greater law-breakers than they ever were when they entered prison. An observer cannot help noting that the majority of inmates who are "minors" are known as "shegues", [a term applied to street children living in Kinshasa, the capital of DRC]. In fact they nearly all originate from the streets of Kinshasa and make up 85 percent of young prisoners. Their time in prison, supposedly to prepare for future integration into society, does not come anywhere close to achieving this aim. In fact, they have no chance of learning a trade or accessing any kind of education or formation. We can see why so many of them become repeat offenders. Effectively they are more at ease inside prison than outside, a vicious circle!
The causes of this deplorable situation are numerous. The precariousness of life experienced by the great majority of the population is a major issue, along with the multiple social and political crises the country has been prey to since independence. The deepening of the economic recession has meant parents can no longer fulfil their responsibilities. Unemployed parents are frequently incapable of ensuring schooling for their numerous offspring. The failure of the State to provide an adequate wage further compounds this social ill. However the fundamental rights of the young include the right to be cared for, educated and protected. Even despite their legal and moral guarantee, these rights are systematically violated. This is the real basis of juvenile delinquency. There is also the social phenomenon of "child sorcerers". Rejected by their families, they are left bereft of any guidance or points of reference, and with time, end up losing contact with any kind of human sentiment and capable of the worst monstrosities on the scale of violent acts.
In view of this dark reality facing children in DRC, it is essential that concerted efforts be made by the State, the Church and NGOs, with the support of the international community, to work together towards a preventive approach and ensure the minimum of aid necessary to break this vicious circle of repression and detention.
Fr. Georges Katumba, S.J.
National Secretary - REP. DEM. CONGO
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