The last act of President Michael Sata was to pardon 975 inmates as Zambia marked the National Independence Golden Jubilee. The president has powers under Article 59 of the Constitution of Zambia to exercise the prerogative of mercy, which includes pardoning criminals.
This is the second largest number of inmates released on presidential amnesty in the history of Zambia after more than 2,318 were released in 2012, also by Michael Sata. The total number of criminals allowed back on Zambian streets since the PF came to power now stands at around 5,700.
The driving reason for the releases are that "the conditions in the prisons have always been a concern of the Patriotic Front (PF) Government, and this move is in line with the Patriotic Front manifesto of turning the prisons into correctional facilities"', according to the Home Affairs Minister Simbyakula. In short we need these large amnesties because of appalling prison conditions.
[view whole blog post
]
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
|
See More
Report Abuse