Serious challenges faced by DPRS management: State Minister for Home Affairs

Minister of State for Home Affairs Mohamed Fayaz has said that serious challenges are faced by the management of the institution responsible for the implementation of criminal rulings of the Courts, Department of Penitentiary and Rehabilitation Service (DPRS), due to the limited legal mandate of the institution.

Fayaz said this last night, while speaking at the ceremony held at Iskandar koshi to mark the 41st anniversary of DPRS.

He highlighted that the penitentiary and rehabilitation bill has been at the parliament for a long time, and said that serious problems arise due to failure to properly execute Court rulings.

Fayaz said that when the new government took over, there were more than 2,000 convicts who had been sentenced to prison; however, less than 25 percent of these convicts were actually behind bars.

He said that great efforts had to be made to imprison those convicts, and that this shows the situation of criminal activity in the society.

“Criminals will not hesitate to commit crimes, if they know they will not be subjected to the due punishment,” he said.

Fayaz noted that one serious challenge faced by DPRS is that Island Councils refuse to accept exiles.

He said that several convicts are sentenced to exile every day, but most of them have to be put under house arrest.

Fayaz stressed that DPRS does not have the capability to monitor convicts who are put under house arrest and exiled, and said that exile and house arrest are obsolete forms of punishment.

Referring to the lack of space in prisons, Fayaz said that while over 2,000 convicts need to be jailed, the maximum number of inmates prisons can currently hold is 1,100.

He said that in spite of this, DPRS does have the capability to ensure that persons sentenced to prison are not on the loose, and does so by holding them in detention.

“Councils do not accept exiles. We have no choice but to put them under house arrest. They go out into society, and commit more crimes. The Commissioner complained to me, when the same person had to be brought in five times within one week. What can we do?” he said.

Foundation has been laid for a new prison in K. Maafushi, which will have capacity to hold 750 prisoners. It has also been decided to construct a new prison in Hdh. Neykurendhoo.