From MARIA MACHARIA in Nairobi, Kenya

NAIROBI, (CAJ News) – A new partnership is envisaged to protect the rights of prisoners and reduce their torture in detention.
The Institute for Security Studies (ISS) and the United Kingdom-based Omega Research Foundation are working with government officials and civil society to help address the issue.
Each year, thousands of incidents of assault and torture of inmates and pre-trial detainees by prison officials are recorded in African countries.
Among other disturbing trends, it emerged in South Africa, certain kinds of security equipment banned in other parts of the world are authorised for use in correctional centres..
ISS and Omega reported the rigorous monitoring and reporting is essential to protect their rights in line with domestic laws and regional and international standards.
Government officials, oversight bodies, lawyers and journalists from Kenya, Malawi and South Africa have been trained to identify law enforcement and security equipment and the medical, legal and human rights implications of their use.
The training workshop is part of a broader initiative funded by the European Union Instrument for Democracy and Human Rights to raise awareness about the manufacture, trade and use of law enforcement and security equipment that could facilitate torture and ill treatment in Africa.
Steve Ogolla, Human Rights Officer at the International Commission of Jurists in Kenya, said the training highlighted the pressing need to carry out an audit of law enforcement equipment used in Kenya and identify those that can facilitate torture.

–CAJ News