All Projects

Ending abuse of pre-trial detention practices in Liberia

East-West Management Institute




Project type Innovation 



Country Liberia 



Support £40,000



In partnership with Prison Fellowships, Liberia
“In Liberia, pre-trial detention often exceeds the maximum sentence that the accused would have faced if found guilty.” — East-West Management Institute

124%

how much Monrovia Central Prison exceeds its capacity

6 months

the average time spent in pre-trial detention in Liberia

Start date
August 2014
End date
February 2016
Period: 19 months

Issue

In Liberia, pre-trial detention often exceeds the maximum sentence that the accused would have faced if found guilty.

Citizens who have been accused of a crime are often held illegally in overcrowded, filthy, and dangerous prisons – where they stay for longer than the maximum sentence they would have served if found guilty of the alleged crime.

Project

The East-West Management Institute is being supported by Making All Voices Count to confront the on-going issue of overuse and abuse of pre-trial detention practices in Liberia’s criminal justice system by publicly tracking detainees and improving the flow of reliable information between correctional authorities, the Ministry of Justice, detainees and their families.

The Institute, together with its partner, Prison Fellowships – Liberia, are using inexpensive ICT to create a new, publicly accessible database, which highlights the abuse of pre-trial detention rules.

The team hope that the platform’s improved public tracking and communication system will assist families in tracing relatives in pre-trial detention, and help to give a voice to the forgotten pre- trial detainees in Monrovia’s Central Prison.

The project aims to ensure that, through better management and distribution of information on prisoners, both citizens and civil society in Liberia can increase pressure on the government to ensure the timely release of detainees, be more publicly accountable for dangerous prison conditions, and end the abuse of prisoners’ rights.

Partner

The East-West Management Institute (EMWI) was founded in 1988 and is an independent not-for-profit organization. EMWI works to strengthen democratic societies by bringing together government, civil society, and the private sector – to build accountable, capable and transparent institutions. EWMI’s success is based on over 25 years of pragmatic field experience in over 30 countries.