NGO condemns attempt to shelve case of sex exploitation of women in Maputo prison

The Mozambican non-governmental organization (NGO) Center for Public Integrity warned this Sunday of attempts to shelve a case involving an alleged network of sexual exploitation of female prisoners in a Maputo prison two years after filing complaints.

“A week ago, we received information from the lawyer who is leading the process, realizing that there is an attempt to archive the process,” Egas Jossai, researcher at the Center for Public Integrity (CIP), an organization that solved the case in mid-2021, said in an interview with Lusa.

The CIP investigation condemned the existence of an alleged prostitution ring in which guards at a special women’s prison in Maputo forced female prisoners to leave the prison to engage in prostitution.

Following the complaint, the Ministry of Justice set up a commission of inquiry which concluded that there had been sexual abuse of prisoners by prison guards and “outsiders”, but that the incidents had taken place inside the penitentiary.

While a total of 40 prison officers face criminal charges and the institution’s leadership has been replaced, CIP warns of alleged attempts to archive the process, noting that while the government has placed only women to ensure security in the women’s pavilions, there may be other cases of human rights violations. .

“Exploitation took place not only outside, the guards themselves mistreated the prisoners. Now we have no way of knowing if this will continue inside the prison, we only know that outside the prison this is no longer happening, ”said the CIP. Researcher.

Lusa unsuccessfully sought clarification from the Mozambique Ministry of Justice.

The final report of the commission set up by the Government to investigate the case concluded that the sexual abuse in the prison was committed by prison guards and “outsiders” who entered the prison at parties held on weekends or on holidays, with the complacency of senior prison officials. officials.

“In other cases, agents demanded sex in exchange for food, drugs, or the promise of privileged treatment,” the document, which was released two years ago, said.

The report also added that prisoners condemned several cases of being forced to have abortions after intercourse with prison guards, some of which were described by the commission as “apparently voluntary”, albeit based on threats.

“Most of the prisoners became pregnant more than once and were forced to have an abortion using the services of nurses assigned to the penitentiary,” the document says, which proposed a specific legal tool to punish guards who come into contact with prisoners.

According to data provided in July 2021, the Special Prison for Women in Maputo held a total of 96 detainees, divided into eight cells of 20 each.

The case provoked outrage from a number of sections of Mozambican society, as an application to initiate criminal proceedings against the leadership of the penitentiary was submitted to the Attorney General’s Office by 17 organizations protecting women’s rights.