The Daily Star - Recent riot sparks debate over how to solve prison problem - April 11, 2011

April 11, 2011 12:00 AM

By Van Meguerditchian

The Daily Star

BEIRUT: The problems of the country’s criminal justice and incarceration system are well-known, but the debate following an uprising by inmates at Roumieh prison last week has so far failed to produce any sure-fire solutions. Lebanon’s largest prison facility has historically fallen under the authority of the Interior Ministry, via the Internal Security Forces, but this is soon expected to change. Caretaker Justice Minister Ibrahim Najjar told The Daily Star that a bilateral agreement signed by the justice and interior ministries in 2006 would officially transfer the jurisdiction over prisons to the Justice Ministry some time next year. In 1949 the government temporarily entrusted authority over prisons to the Interior Ministry, but this will change, as a new ministry body takes over. “The newly established Directorate General Department of the Justice Ministry will take command of prisons in 2012,” said Najjar. Some have blamed the Interior Ministry and ISF for the situation at Roumieh and other prisons, but a simple transfer of administrative jurisdiction doesn’t look likely to solve the key problems. The recent unrest at Roumieh prison and the wave of protests staged by the inmates’ family members have been motivated in part by the desire to speed up the trial process and have included calls to release all prisoners who haven’t yet been charged with a criminal offense, in an “amnesty.” The standard legal guarantee against unlawful detention, in the form of a habeas corpus, is important in protecting individual freedom from arbitrary state action. But Article 108 of the Code of Criminal Procedure works against this right, as it permits security bodies to exercise precautionary detention of suspects accused of various crimes, especially those pertaining to state security, without a defined time limit, and this exacerbates the problem of overcrowding in prisons. Under the law, a suspect may only remain in custody in a police station for a maximum period of four days – a once-renewable period of 48 hours. Many legal experts and activists have said this deadline is often ignored. In the wake of the Roumieh riots, officials agreed to build a courtroom in the vicinity of the prison in an attempt to speed up trials, and the Interior Ministry and ISF say they have asked for extra funding in the past, only for their demands to be rebuffed. However, experts and activists have stressed the need for legal reform. The head of the Lebanese Center for Human Rights, Wadih Asmar, told the Daily Star that more than two-thirds of inmates are awaiting trials and only one-third have been sentenced. “Most of the problems [regarding prisons] would be solved if legal proceedings were respected by the ministries that deal with prisons [justice and interior],” Asmar said. Asked if Justice Ministry authority over prisons would be an improvement, Asmar said that it was the proper body to deal with prisoners. “It would be a positive step to set the relationship of the prison administration with the Justice Ministry,” said Asmar, adding that the Interior Ministry was less qualified for this role because it is focused on security issues. But Western Bekaa MP Robert Ghanem, who chairs Parliament’s Justice and Administration Committee, deemed the transfer of prison authority to the Justice Ministry an unrealistic solution for the near future. “Such a transfer would require at least another four years,” Robert Ghanem said. “Although a new department was established; equipping it with human resources will require an enormous effort,” the MP added. Another solution that has gained support is an amnesty, but a number of lawmakers have criticized such a step. One supporter is Hezbollah’s Nawwar Saheli, and MP for Baalbek-Hermel, who says a pardon would be a positive humanitarian move. “The step, if presented within Parliament, would open a new page in Lebanon,” said Saheli. But MPs on the other side of the March 14-March 8 divide, such as Sami Gemayel, Neamatallah Abi Nasr, and MP Dory Chamoun have all decried the move, and for Ghanem, “granting an amnesty should only take place within exceptional security circumstances, similar to the one following the Civil War period in Lebanon.” Following the end of the Civil War in 1990, partial amnesties were issued during the presidencies of Elias Hrawi and Emile Lahoud. In 2005, the newly elected Parliament voted to grant amnesty to the leader of Lebanese Forces, Samir Geagea, and Islamist prisoners from Dinniyeh and Majdal Anjar. But human rights activist Asmar said an amnesty won’t solve the prison problem unless it is accompanied by legal reforms, and added that “the prison crisis in Lebanon is a social, judicial and security problem.” For Asmar, the political system itself is ill-equipped to act, as politicians are unable to multi-task on resolving important matters. “Today they’re trying to work out a resolution for the prison problem … in two months’ time, everyone will be surprised by [a crisis over] forest fires,” Asmar added.