Prison officers strengthen their respect for human rights through United Nations Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS)
'Peace begins with upholding everyone's rights, including prison inmates.'
This was the core message from Corrections Adviser, Amina Kavirondo, serving with the United Nations Mission in South Sudan, at a workshop for 35 prison officers in Northern Bahr El Ghazal.
'It's also about ensuring proper management of prisons, including properly securing the perimeter, conducting security searches inside and at the entrance,' she said.
'We need all inmates to be safe, secure and fully respected.'
The training aligns daily prison operations and security measures with the principles set out in the United Nations Standard Minimum Rules for the Treatment of Prisoners, also known as the Mandela Rules, in honor of the former South African President, Nelson Mandela, who served 27 years in prison.
The Acting Head of UNMISS' Field Office in Aweil, Alfred Zulu, emphasized the importance of upholding these international standards.
'We feel duty bound to ensure that men and women in uniform, as part of the justice system, are well equipped with understanding the norms, practices and procedures on how to handle inmates,' he said.
The officers were equipped with knowledge to improve management of prisoners, minimize risks to their wellbeing and ensure their welfare, and to uphold human rights standards.
'Back at my workplace, I will implement the skills, particularly on the techniques of the safety of inmates and prison facilities,' said participant Sergeant Major Abuk Mawien.
Participants were urged to promote consistency and sustainability in their approach.
'We, in the government, shall ensure that prisoners are treated fairly and that security measures are implemented with full respect for human dignity, safety and security of prisoners,' said Bol Akoon Akoon, Minister for Local Governance and Law Enforcement Agencies.
Distributed by APO Group on behalf of United Nations Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS).
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Zawya
8 hours ago
- Zawya
Prison officers strengthen their respect for human rights through United Nations Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS)
'Peace begins with upholding everyone's rights, including prison inmates.' This was the core message from Corrections Adviser, Amina Kavirondo, serving with the United Nations Mission in South Sudan, at a workshop for 35 prison officers in Northern Bahr El Ghazal. 'It's also about ensuring proper management of prisons, including properly securing the perimeter, conducting security searches inside and at the entrance,' she said. 'We need all inmates to be safe, secure and fully respected.' The training aligns daily prison operations and security measures with the principles set out in the United Nations Standard Minimum Rules for the Treatment of Prisoners, also known as the Mandela Rules, in honor of the former South African President, Nelson Mandela, who served 27 years in prison. The Acting Head of UNMISS' Field Office in Aweil, Alfred Zulu, emphasized the importance of upholding these international standards. 'We feel duty bound to ensure that men and women in uniform, as part of the justice system, are well equipped with understanding the norms, practices and procedures on how to handle inmates,' he said. The officers were equipped with knowledge to improve management of prisoners, minimize risks to their wellbeing and ensure their welfare, and to uphold human rights standards. 'Back at my workplace, I will implement the skills, particularly on the techniques of the safety of inmates and prison facilities,' said participant Sergeant Major Abuk Mawien. Participants were urged to promote consistency and sustainability in their approach. 'We, in the government, shall ensure that prisoners are treated fairly and that security measures are implemented with full respect for human dignity, safety and security of prisoners,' said Bol Akoon Akoon, Minister for Local Governance and Law Enforcement Agencies. Distributed by APO Group on behalf of United Nations Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS).
Zawya
a day ago
- Zawya
African Peer Review Mechanism (APRM): 'Fitch's Downgrade of Afreximbank's Rating is Based on Flawed Loan Classification'
In line with Decision [Assembly/AU/Dec.631(XXVII)] of the African Union Assembly of Heads of State and Government and Article 6(g) of the African Peer Review Mechanism (APRM) Statute (2020), which together mandate the APRM to provide support to African countries in the field of credit ratings. The APRM routinely undertakes independent analyses of rating actions and commentaries issued by international credit rating agencies on African sovereigns and multilateral financial institutions. On 4 June 2025, Fitch Ratings downgraded African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank), lowering its long-term foreign currency issuer default rating from 'BBB' to 'BBB-' with a negative outlook. Fitch justified its decision by citing a perceived increase in credit risk and weak risk management policies, based on its estimate that the bank's non-performing loans (NPLs) stood at 7.1%. This estimate stems from Fitch's classification of exposures to the sovereign Governments of Ghana (2.4%), South Sudan (2.1%) and Zambia (0.2%) as NPLs. Notably, this 7.1% figure is significantly higher than the 2.44% ratio reported by Afreximbank in its own disclosures. The APRM notes with concern Fitch Ratings' misclassification of Afreximbank's sovereign exposures to the Governments of Ghana, South Sudan and Zambia as NPLs. This classification raises critical legal, institutional and analytical issues which the APRM strongly contests. The assumption that Ghana, South Sudan and Zambia would default on their loans to Afreximbank is inconsistent with the 1993 Treaty establishing the Bank to which Ghana and Zambia are both founding members, shareholders and signatories. The Multilateral Treaty signed in 1993 is legally binding on all member countries, imposing specific legal obligations related to the Bank's protection, immunities and financial operations. By virtue of this Treaty, loans extended by Afreximbank to its member countries are governed by a framework of intergovernmental cooperation and mutual commitment, rather than typical commercial risk principles. It is, therefore, legally incongruent to classify a loan to member countries as non-performing, especially when the borrower states are shareholders in the lender institution, no formal default has occurred and none of the sovereigns have repudiated the obligation. Fitch's unilateral treatment of these sovereign exposures – as comparable to market-based commercial loans – despite their backing by treaty obligations and shareholder equity stakes, is flawed. Doing so reflects a misunderstanding of the governance architecture of African financial institutions and the nature of intra-African development finance. Fitch has misinterpreted the invitation extended by Ghana, South Sudan and Zambia to Afreximbank to discuss the loan repayments as signalling an intention to default and/or to lift the Preferred Creditor Status. The APRM calls upon Fitch Ratings to re-examine its criteria and assumptions in this case and to engage in technical consultations with Afreximbank and other relevant African stakeholders. Objective, transparent and context-intelligent credit assessments are critical to ensuring fair treatment of African institutions in the global financial system. The APRM reaffirms its commitment to promoting accuracy in the credit ratings. Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Afreximbank. APRM CREDIT RATING RESEARCH &ADVISORY For inquiries contact: Dr McBride Nkhalamba Ag. Director of Governance&Specialised Reporting Dr Misheck Mutize Lead Expert on Credit Rating Agencies Ms. Ejigayhu Tefera Researcher For media inquiries or further information, please contact the APRM Continental Secretariat at info@ @ APRMorg – X
The National
3 days ago
- The National
Council of Europe set to embrace human rights reform after migration backlash
The Council of Europe has appeared to bow to pressure to reform its human rights convention, as it risks losing members over growing political backlash against migration. Alain Berset, secretary general of the council, said the European Convention for Human Rights (ECHR) needed 'adaptation' and that there would be 'no taboo' in discussions on reform. 'We are witnessing a world where things are changing rapidly,' he told The Times on Thursday. 'It is accelerating. We see this, and it means that it is normal that we must also adapt to this. We need adaptation. We need discussion about the rules that we want to have, and there is no taboo.' Mr Berset, a former president of Switzerland, said he was willing to begin talks with European leaders who have been critical of the convention. 'We need to have political discussions … at the committee of ministers of the CoE, or directly with me because I am in charge of the convention," he said. His comments mark a shift from the position he took less than two weeks ago, when he accused political leaders who had criticised the convention of 'politicising" the issue. Last month, nine European countries, led by Italian and Danish prime ministers Giorgia Meloni and Mette Fredriksen, issued an open letter that challenged the ECHR and called for an amendment. The aim was for governments to have greater freedom to expel migrants who commit crimes in their countries. They said the convention drafted in 1950 was not suitable to modern times and the vast refugee crisis on Europe's borders. "The ideas themselves are universal and everlasting," they said in a letter. "However, we now live in a globalised world where people migrate across borders on a completely different scale." They also referred to "hostile states" who they accused of flooding European borders with migrants. "We need to be able to take effective steps to counter hostile states that are trying to use our values and rights against us. For example, by instrumentalising migrants at our borders," the letter said. In his response then, Mr Berset urged the countries not to 'weaken the convention, but to keep it strong and relevant'. UK Home Secretary Yvette Cooper also criticised the framework this week, saying a third of successful asylum claims were being granted on 'exceptional grounds' due to a judge's interpretation of Article 8 of the convention. 'That is not exceptional, that is a much broader proportion,' she said. Mr Berset's comments come as the UK's Conservative party are set to launch an inquiry into whether the country should withdraw from the convention. Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch is to say in a speech on Friday that she is 'increasingly of the view' that the UK should withdraw from the treaty. "I am yet to see a clear and coherent route to change within our current legal structures," she will say. Shadow home secretary Chris Philp said he did not take Mr Berset's comments about reform 'very seriously", when speaking to the BBC on Friday morning. Mr Philp said there had been two previous attempts to amend the convention 'that didn't work' and pointed to Mr Berset's immediate 'rebuffing' of the open letter. 'I'm afraid I don't have the view that it can be reformed,' he added. German Chancellor Friedrich Merz blamed migration for the rise of anti-Semitism in his country, calling it a "terrible challenge". "We have a sort of imported anti-Semitism with the big numbers of migrants we have had within the last 10 years," Mr Merz said told US broadcaster Fox News on Thursday. He was responding to a report from the Federal Association of Departments for Research and Information on Anti-Semitism, which documented 8,627 anti-Semitic incidents in 2024 – a 77 per cent increase compared with the previous year.
