Harare, Zimbabwe——

Zimbabwean President Emmerson Mnangagwa pardoned 4,000 prisoners as part of efforts to decongest the country’s prisons.

Mnangagwa released women, people with chronic illnesses, teenagers and life-sentence prisoners serving at least 20 years, and amnesty prisoners at Chikurubi Maximum Prison in Harare were released on Friday.

Prisoners sentenced for murder, treason, armed robbery, robbery, or death row prisoners sentenced to life imprisonment shall not be granted probation.

Moses Chihobvu, director of Zimbabwe’s Prisons and Correctional Services Department, told reporters: “We have more than 24,000 prisoners inside. So, these 4,000 people go out…the prison is still overcrowded.”

Chihobwu said prisons and correctional facilities would benefit from the releases, gaining the space they need to house inmates, and would also save on food and medical costs.

The pardoned prisoner declined to be named but spoke to reporters as he left the prison.

A prisoner who is about to be released from prison with 15 months remaining on his sentence for illegal entry was excited and grateful at the news of Mnangagwa’s pardon. Prisoners talked about looking forward to using the skills they learned in prison to care for their families.

Another pardoned prisoner had served two months after being caught stealing from his uncle. He said that although he was treated well and learned a lot in prison, it was a traumatic experience that prisoners hoped to never repeat.

The last pardon in Zimbabwe was in May 2023, but prisons are still overcrowded.

Obert Muzembe, a criminologist at Muzembe Law Firm, blames the economic downturn.

“You look at the inflation rate in Zimbabwe. It puts pressure on society and a lot of the weak in society end up like this. [resorting] Survive by illegal means,” Muzembe said.

“have [a] There are some questions that can be taken to deal with this situation. Number one, of course, we need to educate society, educate the community about crime,” he said. “Second, you need the church to emerge. Napoleon Bonaparte once said that the church is the moral compass of society. Then, obviously, economic measures are needed to improve the well-being of the people. But most importantly, we need society itself to be educated through the churches and various stakeholders. ”

People who were pardoned last year and arrested again are not eligible for the amnesty announced by Mnangagwa this week.