Community sentencing has overarching benefits—Legal Experts

Accra, March 11, GNA – Some Legal Experts have urged the Government to expedite action to make community sentencing for petty offences part of Ghana’s criminal justice system as the approach has overarching benefits.

Mr Edmund Amarkwei-Foli, the Director of Programmes, Institute of Human Rights and Democracy in Africa, in an interview with the Ghana News Agency, said the approach encouraged offender accountability while promoting reformation and reintegration within the society.

He said Ghana’s approach to sentencing was largely imprisonment and/or fines and, therefore, needed a new sentencing regime.

Mr Amarkwei-Foli said this during a sensitisation workshop for Civil Society Organisations on community service sentencing in Ghana.

The workshop organised by the Commonwealth Human Rights Initiative Africa Office, (CHRI) an implementing partner of the USAID Justice Sector Support (JSS) Activity), sought to highlight the importance of Community Service Sentencing in Ghana’s justice delivery system and the need for stakeholders’ support to advance the process.

Currently, Ghana is among many African countries taking measures to introduce Community Service Sentencing as alternative means of punishing minor offenders of the law, without necessarily resorting to imprisonment.

Major stakeholders in the criminal justice delivery system, including the Ghana Prisons Service, have established the need for reform in legislative and sentencing practices

Section 294 of the Criminal Procedure Act, 1960 (Act 30), prescribes death, imprisonment, detention, fines, payment of compensation and liability to police supervision as punishments for criminal offences including petty offences.

Petty offences are considered to be those that inhibit the performance of life-sustaining activities such as movement, rest, trade, carrying out livelihoods and engaging in hygiene-related activities in public places.

The African Commission on Human People’s Right (ACHPR) described petty offences as “minor offences for which the punishment is prescribed by law to carry a warning, community service, a low-value fine or short-term imprisonment, often for failure to pay the fine.

Meanwhile, Ghana’s Criminal Offences Act, 1960 (Act 29), only classifies offences as either misdemeanours or felonies. While misdemeanours are regarded as less serious, felonies refer to crimes of high seriousness.

In view of this, the Government, through the Ministry of Interior and all stakeholders have put in motion Ghana’s Community Service Bill which is still at the draft stage.

The bill, if passed into law, would prevent people from being incarcerated for petty offences and help deal with overpopulation at our prisons.

Mr Edmund Amarkwei-Foli said such a law would reduce Government’s expenditure on our prisons since the numbers would reduce.

“Community sentencing has become necessary as we evolve, it prevents loss of employment to the offender and or harm or break up of the immediate family of the offender,” he noted.

He said it would also protect the fundamental human rights of the inmates since overcrowding in places of detention is an affront to the dignity of the detainees.

Mr Martin Nwosu, Legal/Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) Practitioner, Regent Law Firm, said community sentencing prevents sending and mixing first time offenders with hardened prisoners.

He said the stigma, labelling and tagging of people who had served their sentence as ex-convict in the community could be dealt with because they would reintegrate well.

“In this modern society rehabilitation is the way to go, and it helps to reintegrate the offender in the community,” Mr Nwosu said.

In 2020, statistics revealed that prison overcrowding nationwide was 52 per cent.

Globally, the purpose for punishing offenders hinges on retribution, deterrence, prevention, and rehabilitation.

Madam Mina Mensah, the Director of CHRI Africa Office, said although the Community Service Bill was yet to be passed, there was the need to commence sensitization among the general populace to facilitate understanding and appreciation of the initiative.

She said the sensitisation was to help persuade the public to accept offenders, who serve sentences in their midst and encourage the public to assist in the implementation of such sentences was very necessary considering Ghana’s history of lynching suspected criminals.

“Ultimately, by throwing light on the initiative, the people will be carried along on the processes, hence demand the passage of an effective law and support its implementation when it is finally passed into law,” she added.

GNA