By Petronella Sibeene
WINDHOEK
After serving ten years in jail for rape, Engelhardt Ngatikare has warned that Namibian police cells are a breeding ground for dangerous criminals and not rehabilitation centres as the public might perceive.
Sentenced in 1995 to 14 years imprisonment, with four years suspended, Ngatikare yesterday told delegates attending the Gender-Based Violence conference in the capital that most prisoners are treated cruelly mostly by fellow prisoners. That has resulted in most inmates “building hurt” inside.
“Society thinks it is a rehabilitation centre, but I realized it is a place where criminals are manufactured. Allowing a prisoner to suffer, is just creating a time bomb. When these people come out, they are even more dangerous and will explode,” he warned.
Ngatikare revealed that there are a lot of disturbing happenings in jail – among them, raping of juveniles.
“Officials have visited these places. They know what is happening, but they are silent. The Human Rights organizations are also just money-collectors,” said a member of the Criminal Returning to Society (CRIAS).
Recently, the minister of Safety and Security, Peter Tsheehama, expressed grave concern about the availability of dangerous weapons and drugs in most of the country’s correctional facilities. The weapons that were put up for public display were an obvious sign of potential danger and threat to inmates and service personnel.
Tsheehama said routine searches by police and prison officials in the Windhoek Central Prison, Katutura and Wanaheda Police Stations revealed an unpleasant situation of drug-trafficking and smuggling in of dangerous weapons.
The police confiscated more than 270 contraband items in 29 months. These included hand-made knives, escape pliers, hacksaws, sharp objects, broken bottles, dagga pipe bones, cellphones, sewing needles, grinders, hospital blades, water bombs, scissors, screwdrivers and sharpened spoons, among others.
Ngatikare said the environment where one is raised plays an important role in shaping the behaviour of an individual. He committed the crime because of what he was exposed to as a growing boy. He was brought up in a home where gender-based violence was rife.
“My father was like a visitor to me, and my parents would watch while other kids beat me up,” he narrated.
As he grew up, he found himself in groups of notorious children with similar backgrounds.
“When it was time for school, we would go and break into houses – break the window, and I would go through (to steal),” he said.
When the situation became unbearable at home, he took to the streets where he met children from similar backgrounds, and a gang was formed.
“I grew up that way. I saw fights, rape, and sometimes murders. I was also valued and respected (by the gang) for being cruel. I rejoiced when I saw pain”, he recounted.
One of the issues the 350 delegates will discuss at the conference being held under the theme “Unifying Action to Eliminating Gender-Based Violence in Our Society”, are the causes and effects of gender-based violence, understanding how it affects the children, youth, elderly and people living with disabilities. It will also cover policy-based approaches and interventions to fight gender-based violence, promoting and implementing gender-based programmes, roles of policy-makers and communication constraints and opportunities.