Namibia transfers six Zambian prisoners home in third joint exercise

Namibia has transferred six sentenced Zambian nationals to Zambia through the Katima Mulilo border post in the Zambezi Region, in the third joint offender transfer exercise between the two countries.

The repatriation was conducted under Article 8 (1) and (2) of the Agreement on the Transfer of Sentenced Offenders between Zambia and Namibia.

In a media release issued in Katima Mulilo on Wednesday, Namibia Correctional Services Commissioner General, Raphael Hamunyela, said the six were selected from 142 Zambian nationals serving sentences in Namibian correctional facilities.

Hamunyela said no Namibian nationals were transferred from Zambia because none of the three Namibians serving sentences there had expressed interest in returning home.

“The transferred offenders were serving sentences for various offences including contraventions of the Nature Conservation Ordinance, immigration offences, rape, murder and assault with intent to cause grievous bodily harm,” he said.

Speaking during the handover, Zambia Correctional Service Western Regional Commander and Senior Assistant Commissioner Jonathan Jere said family support played an important role in the rehabilitation of offenders.

“This programme, you know, gives opportunities to our inmates who we have received so that they can have the opportunity to interact with their relatives the time they will be serving their sentences, so we are very happy,” Jere said.

Meanwhile, Namibian Correctional Service Northern Region Commander Commissioner Eliakim Shikongo called for continued cooperation between the two countries.

“As correctional officers, let us collaborate and support one another to overcome challenges we are faced with in order to deliver noble services to our stakeholders in our two countries,” Shikongo said.

The latest exercise brings the total number of offenders transferred between the two countries to 46 since the agreement was signed in March 2012.

The agreement allows sentenced offenders to serve the remainder of their sentences in their home countries, supporting rehabilitation and reintegration by enabling them to remain closer to their families.

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