Prisons also known as correctional institutions, an institution for the confinement of persons who have been remanded (held) in custody by a judicial authority or who have been deprived of their liberty following conviction for a crime. A person found guilty of a felony or a misdemeanour may be required to serve a prison sentence. The holding of accused persons awaiting trial remains an important function of contemporary prisons, and in some countries such persons constitute the majority of the prison population.
During the 16th century a number of houses of correction were established in Europe for the rehabilitation of minor offenders and vagrants; they emphasized strict discipline and hard labour. Over time, imprisonment came to be accepted as an appropriate method of punishing convicted criminals. Poor sanitation in these institutions caused widespread disease among prisoners, who were generally held unsegregated, without any consideration for gender or legal status. Outbreaks of epidemic typhus, known as ―jail fever,‖ occasionally killed not only prisoners but also jailers and (more rarely) judges and lawyers involved in trials. The modern prison developed in the late 18th century in part as a reaction to the conditions of the local jails of the time.
The situation of African prisons
Yet, once African countries seek to bring about the correctional science or development of rehabilitation to prisoners, the realities facing the prison system often make any attempts very difficult. Most literatures of African countries reviewed for the purposes of this chapter are subject to high levels of overcrowding and inadequate resources and facilitated. Extreme conditions of overcrowding, resulting in inadequate sleeping space, a lack of proper sleeping, a lack of ventilation and lighting, were some of the factors mentioned in many of the reports of the African Commission`s Special Reporter on Prisons and Detention in Africa. Concern was also raised about excessive and inappropriate discipline and punishment, labour, and paltry access to medical treatment. Another problem often mentioned is that the prison systems fail to separate prisoners sentences for serious crimes from those convicted of less serious.
These factors have an impact on the mental a and physical health of a prisoners and fail to create an environment conducive to rehabilitation. Overcrowding also has a negative impact
on the staffing and management of a prison. This has proved by UK`s Chief Inspector of Prisons in his 2001/02 Annual Report: Prison overcrowding is, however, undoubtedly making it more difficult to build sustain progress [with assessing prisoners and placing them in appropriate programmers]. It is more difficult to get prisoners out of cell [sic] and into activities. Frequent prisoner movement makes the completion of courses and skilled- based qualifications much more difficult. (cited in Steinberg 2005:15). These concerns are severely illustrated on the African prison. The literature showed that in one prison in the Central African Republic inmates were not allowed out of the congested and poorly ventilated cell at all for fear that they would escape (ACHPR 20000b) In many African countries, the prisons are understaffed and few personnel have received training that helps them to understand their role in terms of facilitating offender development and reintegration.
In South Africa was in past 10 years quoted as stating: ' Correcting inmates is an extraordinary responsibility (that) needs extraordinary citizens. I don`t have extraordinary citizens as yet, at the moment we have got people that have got a matric and have got on criminals record. ' He up and throw staff had no respect for prisoners and still believed that they 'must lock them up and throw away the key'( Pretoria News 29 September 2005).
In addition, most countries in Africa have no, or inadequate, numbers of professional staff, such as social workers, psychologists, educators and vocational trainers. In addition, the rehabilitation or reformation of prisoners is often viewed very narrowly , so that the provision of schooling, training or work opportunities is often seen as the full extent of rehabilitation, even when no others psychosocial aspects are catered for. When programmed and facilities are available in prisons, they are most often targeted towards juvenile offenders and female offenders , which may be as a result of donor agendas in respect of these marginalized groups. In Namibia criminal rehabilitation works to reduce criminal recidivism.
The success of rehabilitation depends on manner the programs are arranged over since reception of the prisoner in prison. The offender is assumed treated and the services or programs used are designed to positively reinforce pro-social behavavior but how do we approach this methodology?. In the first five years after independence of Namibia, the Correctional Service concentrated in creating work opportunities for its inmates (Correctional Forum, Vol 1.2007) The Correctional Service of Namibia tried to break the Prisoner's idleness that breeds boredom and resultant to trouble-making and lack of self-esteem.
Therefore started to look for land where inmates could work on and in the few workshops where Prisoner's labour could be utilized. Whereby the Service could manage to get Divunda
rehabilitation centre in Kavango region and Farm Scott in Tsumeb, but this was not enough, as they discovered that work only, may not be the only method of changing inmates, altitude against criminal activities. it should be accompanied with appropriate effective intervention programme. This is more philosophical approach in which we diagnose the criminogenic needs or problems of an offender and then put on the correct therapy. That is where the expert expertise of the
specialized staff comes in, social workers, educationalists, psychologists, criminologists to do the intake assessment and prepare correctional programme and offer the programme to the offender (Correctional Forum, Vol 1 of 2007). With the assistance of the working partners such as Correctional Service of Canada, the Correctional Service of Namibia has been working with them form 1999 in the new approach. Currently they are having two joint projects with Canadian running, namely, the Pilot Project on Unit Management and the Offender Management System. The Pilot Project on Unit Management started in April, 2005 at Windhoek Central Prison with 431 inmates selected on the basis of their risks and were placed in five units. Unit management is very important vehicle for rehabilitation as it is the best practice in prisoner's management whereby each contact and action by staff is designed to promote security and custody, prisoner rehabilitation and provision of constructive prison environment. However, the Correctional Service of Namibia have conducted an evaluation on this Management Unit and found out that it was running very smoothly (Correctional Forum, Vol 1 of 2007). Constraints in implementation of the rehabilitation programs in Namibia;
Constraints and setback: Undeniable, lack of resources and inadequate of funding can be singled in the operations of the Namibian Prison Service. This major problem which has an impact on all our ambitious programs that they worked out. Their strategic plan which spells out their road map of implementation of the Policy document and Mission Statement is yet to be realized. Almost the big junk of the budget goes to wage bill and Prisoner's basic needs.
Nature of the Namibian work as indicated earlier, they do not have control on the people who are brought to us in terms of their numerical presence and their movement on transfers and appearance to courts (Correctional Forum, Vol 1 of 2007).