FROM THE CHAIRMAN’S DESK

GET TO KNOW THE IPRO FOUNDER.   

  DR. ALEXANDER MWINGIRA

Getting into the heart of Dr. Alexander Mwingira is one of the hardest and yet most fundamental in understanding IPRO’S ideals. Ever since I joined the Organization, I have always been very keen in its literatures and quite attentive to lectures delivered by its founder-Dr Mwingira – to the very core of its vision, Love Thy Enemy.

Though the Vision itself is unique, noble and above all divine, the general of focusing on Prisoners is an offshoot of PF1 (Prisoners Fellowship International). PF1 is a group founded by Charles Colson, while in prison because of the Watergate Scandal, Charles Colson vowed, after his jail term, to dedicate all his efforts and material wealth to the well being of the prisoners. He surely did that, hence the birth of FP1.

The major and only task of PF1 was to go round prisons, preaching to the prisoners so that they may get saved. Such endeavor proved fruitless because the immediate word of God to a prisoner is not verbal but material. Giving a piece of soap tissue paper, a blanket and so on to a prisoner makes him/ her see Christ in you. You don’t’ need any further to explain to him/her who Christ is, lest they convert even your Bible into tissue paper.

After foreseeing the impending demise of the group’s efforts. Dr Mwingira emerged with a remedy which looked appealing to the group, only that, due to their conservative nature, and their bid to stick to the ideology of the founder-that of preaching to the prisoners and distributing Bibles-they found it a bit hard to adopt it. Consequently, they gave Dr. Mwingira the challenge of coming to Africa, convincing his fellow Africans about the idea and if he wins their support then he goes back to them. In that task, they were ready to provide Dr. Mwingira with whatever kind of materials or financial support. This is the task that is yet to come to function.

The most crucial question is what is Dr. Mwingira’s formula? His basis of augmentation was to look for a way through which crime can be completely eliminated from the society. This idea was born after observing that the current punitive method has failed since instead of rehabilitating criminals, it only hardens them.

His remedy is just built on the very nature of man Love. It is mans nature to love. That is why in the absence of love, man develops such complications as ulcers, stigma, stroke, insanity and so on. In fact it is scientifically well proved that one uses a lot of calories when frowning than when smiling. Such are only but the proofs that love constitutes the very essence of man.

 

This love, the archbishop reasoned has no uniqueness when directed to a friend. In any case the very essence of friendship is love, in that when you tell someone that you love your friend is just some sought of tautology. Hence this due becomes unique only when directed to an enemy. There then emerges IPRO’S vision- Love Thy Enemy.

Still there is some ambiguity in the term ‘enemy’ what kind of enemy”? From experience criminals are always the greatest enemies of the society. That is why the very moment one commits a crime he is hastily pulled away from the society.  And locked up somewhere-prison. Therefore. Dr. Mwingira concluded that this love should be directed towards these enemies called the prisoners. Hence the missions of IPRO was born (the mission is towards the prisoners).

 

What about prisoners? This could be the most obvious question. That prompted IPRO to lay down its objectives entail what is exactly to be done as far as prisoners’ plight is concerned. As per my own analysis, the objectives could be divided into the four groups that are directly linked to the question of prisons. These groups are prisoners themselves, ex-prisoners, their families and the world at large.

 

To the prisoners: the objectives to be met will be moral, physiological/spiritual aspects will be fulfilled trough counseling. Counselors will be allocated to various prisons, to journey with prisoners and try to find the causes to their to their criminal acts and thereby try to seek the possible solutions. Still on the same note, they will help to tackle the problem of deviant behavior such as homosexuality drug abuse and so on which are quite prevalent in our prisons.

The material aspect will be just to supplement the moral, psychological and spiritual aspect.  A part from solving the immediate need of prisoner, it also acts as bait that will make it easy for the counselors to strike.

To the ex-prisoners: IPRO will create a link between the prisoners and the society. This will be made possible through the provision of moral, psychological and material/financial services. Once in prison, due to the adverse conditions that prevail therein, one is always psychologically disoriented. IPRO will   therefore provided psychiatric services to such persons to enable them fit back into the society after their jail terms.

 

Above all, what society forgets is that once taken to jail, one loses his/her job, or if at all he/she was a sole proprietor then the business collapses? Therefore taking such a person back  to the society without any means that will enable him earn his living is a big temptation to commit even a bigger crime. It is even worse if such a person has a family to look after. In such cases, IPRO will take the trouble of training such person in establishing income generating project and thereafter providing him/her with the material and financial boost for the same.

At the family level:  IPRO will have social workers who will be operating at the community level. Their task will be to give moral support to those families who have been downcast because one of them is in prison. Such a family is always the laughing stock in the community. There will also be a women department that will be solely entrusted with helping women remain faithful to their marriages despite the fact that their husbands are in prison.

One the material side. IPRO will come in to assist poor families whose bread winners are jailed. If care is not taken always the imprisonment of such a person will have two major negative impacts: firstly the whole family is virtually “imprisoned”. In that they cannot provide for their daily needs worse still the children might terminate their education. You therefore find that in such situation, innocent people suffer by extension for the mistake that was not theirs. The second impact is that while the person is in jail being hardened to a hard-core criminal, the children at home are being nurtured to be criminals. This is because now that the children will not continue with education, it will be very hard for them to earn the living in future other than through criminal acts.

 

To the world at large: IPRO has the task of educating the masses that a crime and criminal are two distinct entities. Basing on that the world should strive towards elimination of crime not criminals. To my own understanding this aspect will put IPRO at the vanguard in fight against capital punishment. I always go by the maxim in morality that, ‘’ Human value is not erased by human guilt” That is the same chorus that IPRO will have to sing to the world. Honestly, there is no justification as to why a person should be killed. Action follows being, and the converse are not true. Our human essence is not eliminated by our acts instead our human nature remains intact despite our acts.

 

Sheer act of killing does not make one less human. Even after that incident one is still fully human. If anything, killing such a person is just preaching the gospel of an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth” which simply makes the world blind and toothless, and surely that is what the world has become.

 

In view of the above it is quite clear that it will draw a lot of criticism and opposition from the greater part of the society. This is just because Dr. Mwingira approach is quite contrary to the universal way of though .History has well taught us that whoever tries to go against the universal system always get his/her dose. The whole world is aware of what happened to Galileo Galilei with his heliocentric theory, Dr. Mwingira wont’ be spared either.

 

What is this universal system? When a person commits a crime, he/she should be whisked away from the society. That sounds madness according to human wisdom but it is in fact the only way in divine wisdom. Say this to Dr. Mwingira “Bravo and forge ahead. Let the hand of God guide you and trough you God is going to change the World”

 

I always find some parallelisms between the Vision, Mission and Objectives of IPRO and the activities of Christ. Actually, the vision of Christ was the salvation of making. This he left to be accomplished by the rest of humanity. His mission was changing with time: at once among the Greeks, again among the Gentiles, the House of Israel and so on. The vision is always far reaching, the mission time bounded and objectives concrete.

 

Focusing on what the mission is, it is quite clear that there will come a time when the mission of IPRO will be accomplished, when all prisons will be closed down, by the time IPRO will direct its mission towards another enemy. Dr Mwingira, through his exhortations, in fact, he always makes this clear. All these can only be well understood through the assistance of the Holy Spirit that gets into the heart of Dr. Alexander Mwingira who was born in 1940.

 

 

UNLESS THE UNIVERSAL SYSTEM OF ‘AN EYE FOR AN EYE’ IS CHANGED TO THAT OF ‘LOVE THE ENEMY SYSTEM, THE WORLD IS BOUND TO DESTRUCTION

  

 

I am glad to introduce you to this newly envisioned periodical magazine save the Prisoners.

Save the Prisoners (STP) is a ministerial magazine of the international Prisoner relief organization (IPRO) that will be published after every four months,. It is aimed at creating international public awareness of the need and importance of assisting prisoners and their families with the spirit of ‘love they enemy” which is the mission statement of IPRO.

IPRO is envisioned as a global non-political and non- profit making organization. Its mission is to provide al-round relief to the prisoners and their families whom society views as enemies. IPRO believes that the only way to save the prisoners is by loving and demonstrating love to them as away of pulling them towards the society.  This can only be possible if the international community as a global family desists from the belief and the practice of revenging.

Most people believe in the saying: "an eye for an eye” and “tooth for a tooth”. Today’s society should instead embrace that attitude and practice of loving thy enemy. We should accordingly offer moral, material and financial relief to the prisoners; this is the most practical means and way of changing the prisoners’ attitude and behavior. This kind of support will help in drawing them back into mainstream society. Save the Prisoners magazine will be the vehicle by which IPRO will endeavor to create necessary international public awareness of its vision and mission with a view to changing from the negative to positive attitude of society towards prisoners and their families.

 

IPRO believes in offering total relief to the prisoners with sincere and practical love. The result will be a more effective correctional change in the attitude and behavior of the prisoners that could not have been achieved under present penal rules and practices. Welcome to ‘Save the Prisoners Magazine” Read it with an open mind and heart. In so doing you will receive and be able to nature love and understanding for the prisoner, who is a creation of your society. You will be also be able to accept that you are morally obligated to assist him by all means possible. We should all recognize the fact that “Prisons Are Nobody’s Home”

 

 

 

 The International Prisoners Relief Organization

What is IPRO?

International Prisoner Relief Organization, best known as IPRO is a non-profit; non-denomination, non-political and non-government equal opportunity worldwide organization formed by prisoners to cater for their welfare and their families.

 Vision

The vision of IPRO is to work with willing government, correctional institutions; law enforcement agencies, humanitarian and religions organizations and all national and multinational bodies concerned  with the welfare of the under pillaged and principally prisoners. Offering financial relief to them, their families and the victims of their act as a practical way of ‘Love to Thy Enemy shall do this’. This will help correct reform and rehabilitate the prisoner through love as opposed to punitive measures and thus draw them back to mainstream society as positive contributing members.

 

Mission.

While  preaching, teaching and giving appropriate counseling and guidance to  prisoners’ the mission of IPRO is more particularly focused on providing moral, material and financial relief to prisoners and their families to alleviate their more immediate and direct poverty and suffering of the criminal behavior in the first place.

Objectives

1.       To give material relief to prisoners in prison for their immediate comfort, survival, recreation, entertainment, education and training, such being beds and beddings, clothing; soaps and toothpaste and brushes slippers books and library facilities, newspaper and periodicals, radio and television, indoor and out door game facilities, medical treatment and medicines, legal aid and food aid including complementing government efforts in all other ways necessary to make  prisons life tolerable and correctional aims achievable.

2.       To give such material and financial relief to the families of the prisoners to facilitate continuity of the family and to supplement towards their food, housing, transport, clothing, and education for the children in order to reverse the current situation where such families disintegrate with the wives and daughters turning to sex trade and the sons turning to the street and crime.

3.       To give compensation or supplement such compensation to the victim of the prisoner, crimes to the extent possible and permissible within the parameters of law in order to guarantee the safety of the prisoner after release and to promote the ‘love of they enemy’ as envisaged in the vision of IPRO.

4.       To provide budgeting financing  and short term housing to immediate ex-prisoners as transitional reassurance Making such prisoners sufficiently are self relief self employed and acceptable positive contributing members of society and for the same purpose to equip such immediate ex-prisoners with tools necessary for them to put the trades and skills learnt in prison into gainful employment. Ex- prisoners with appropriate educational and professional backgrounds will be helped to secure salaried employment subject to the dictates of the labor market.

5.       To solicit, receive utilize and account for all materials and financial aid, donations or grants from all governments institutions, organizations and bodies worldwide which are committed to correction  reforms and rehabilitations of prisoners and exultime way of banishing crime and sin from the face of the world and descent society-Reclaiming the person and the soul through love encouragement and support.

Objectives of International Prisoners Relief Organization (IPRO)

The principal objectives of the International Prisoners Relief Organization (IPRO) is to correct, reform and rehabilitees the prisoners with practical application of ‘Love the enemy’

Preaching to prisoners to be saved is good but IPRO recognizes through the practical experience of its founder and ministers that such preaching to merely “convert ‘is not good enough to a prisoners who sleeps on bare concrete floor without a mattress or blanket; who is only half clothed; who when he eats half cooked bean or yellow greens with ugali in rations hardly enough for a child. A prisoner who will never access a doctor when he falls ill and if he does will never obtain the correct or prescribed drugs.  He is isolated from his family or loved ones, who was tortured and maimed by the police during the arrest and interrogation and who continues to be brutalized by prison warders everyday of his prison life, who is contracting other contagious diseases such a as tuberculosis, diahorrea, dysentery, typhoid, scabies and even HIV/AIDS from fellow prisoners due to congestion, poor sanitary and unhygienic conditions in the prison. Who suffers from severe depression, streets, high blood pressure , fear of the known or the unknown anxiety and confusion as he never knows whether it will take three or five years to complete his trial for pick pocketing or weather his police framed up murder trial will last five or ten years ; who knows that by his mere entry in to prison he has become a reject- an outcast in his own society; hands of the government, corporate bodies and even the church-------such  is the position  and the plight of the prisoner in Africa and most of the third world.

 

Such is not the prisoner who needs preaching to in order to be saved rather such is the prisoner who needs adequate food and reasonable clothing, descent accommodation, accessible medical care, supplies of basic need such as bedding, soap, toothpaste, toilet paper and above all LOVE.

 

LOVE’ Practical LOVE for the prisoner and his family is the sole purpose for the launching and existence of IPRO world wide as envisioned by the Hon. Charles Kolson (Now Rev. Kolson) a former United States Secretary in the Nixon administration –himself an ex prisoner who founded the prisoners fellowship International (PFI) and with whom Arch Bishop Alexander Mwingira who was later to vision IPRO worked closely in the formative years of PFI.

 

Thus IPRO seeks to provide basic relief to the prisoner and his family here on earth as a way of preparing him for life thereafter. IPRO believes in addressing the root cause of crime which creates the prisoners as fundamental way of eradicating crime, correcting, reforming, and rehabilitating the prisoner ready for acceptance back to the society .IPRO believes that dealing with the mere symptoms of the criminal mind no matter how well intentioned, will not save the prisoner and the soul of the prisoner. Instead, presenting correctional measure merely herded him.

IPRO will establish working links with the police department, the Attorney generals Office. The Judiciary, Prisoners Department and the Ministry of home Affairs and that of Justice and Constitutional Affairs. The organization shall also work together with the local intersectional human right organization and lobby groups to ensure the following:

That the criminal justice process is rationalized in terms of time between the time of arrest and the time of arraignment in court. Start and completion of trials length. Numbers of adjournment-for whatever reasons and provision for instant acquittal for non- appearance witness or for lack of material evidence. Similarly time limit should be established for appeal, the period a prisoner spends in remands is reduced from the term of custodial sentence upon conviction.

 

Those prisoners acquitted for lack of evidence, a reflection of poor investigations and wrongful arrests and or malicious prosecutions are naturally compensated while the perpetrators of such acts are surcharged.

 

That the presidential amnesty given on national days to some category of prisoner be spread to all connected prisoners across the board.

·         The prisoners are decongested by way of courts imposing realistic and affordable bail terms remanding juveniles in appropriate institutions such as schools, juvenile remand homes and other rehabilitation centers as this will also protect them from abuse by older prisoners, thus being hardened.

·         Remanding inmates and drug addicts in mental hospitals and correctional instructions other than where they cannot access appropriate counseling, assuming that capital offenders are properly vetted before being charged so that man slaughter and robbery suspects are charged appropriately. Other than being charged as is the case now, with murder or robbery with violence which are unbearable only for the offences to revert to the boilable after 3 to 10 year of suffering in prisons.

·         In a nutshell IPRO will seek to lay a catalyzing, sensitizing, and facilitating role on reforming not only the criminal justice systems and pertinent laws but also to mend attitude and behavior of prisoners. This will help to put them back into mainstream society as constructive members for the betterment of mankind.

·         To provide halfway for prisoners on parole probation and or police supervision and to those immediately released from   prison as a stop gap restore on transitional/ bragging step between prison and main stream society.

·         To provide the family of the prisoners, the wife and the children and the dependant with basic necessities particularly food, shelter, clothing, Medicare and education IPRO recognizes that the immediate victims suffer when a prisoner is incarcerated. The immediate family wives become hated, despised, and isolated. The children are jeered at rejected and so in helplessness, desperation and abandonment, wives desert the families and turn to prostitution .The daughter’s drop out of school and join their mothers. The sons turn to crimes and drugs thus multiplying the number of potential prisoners. This is the situation IPRO seeks to reverse through practical measures of loving ‘they enemy’ whom prisoner’s families are erroneously perceived to be.

·         In this endeavor IPRO will seek to separate criminals from the crime and sinner from the sin with a view to salvage the criminal and the sinner and banishing crime and sin forever.

·         Persistent to that broad mission therefore the International Prisoners Relief Organization aims.

·         To preach and teach the ‘gospel’ of loving they enemy’ worldwide as a way of creating awareness. Sensitizing the global family of societies the need to rehabilitate and reform prisoners through correctional relief measures of demonstrated love.

·         To change the position of the prisoner from that of the despised, rejected, foreland hated. Discriminated, downgraded and abused Perrier to that of a loved child who needs love and guidance to return to the ways of God and fit in decent society.

·         To provide relief to prisoners by way of combining appropriate counseling, dhuidance, vocational training and suitable education.

·         Provision of basic necessities while in prison such as beds, mattress, blankets, clothing, soap toothpaste entertainment (radio, television) and recreational facilities.

·         Providing basic tools and mobilization finance for prisoners to start gainful entrepreneur projects to assist them in securing gainful employment upon release from prison as alternative failing back or crime for renewal.

·         To supplement government efforts in the provision of appropriate Medicare, food, transport, legal aid and clothing to the prisoners as well as assisting prisoners to make amends with victims within the parameters of law.

·         To instate appropriate educational and training certification programs that will be of benefit to ex-prisoners and the society at large. Many highly rated leaders in the world acquired their education in prisons

 

 

PRISONS ARE NOBODY’S HOME

·         A prisoner today, is a President tomorrow

·         A President today is a Prisoner tomorrow

It looks simple but a great historic event to record that Nelson Mandela stayed in prison for 27 years  to came out sane and sober enough to be entrusted being the  first president of South Africa, one of the greatest and most developed countries in Africa.

Honorable Olusegun   Obasanjo also made history to create his powerful political party, fought for elections and won to become the president of one of the richest countries in Africa –Nigeria.

Likewise, Honorable Robert Mugabe, a pinching thorn too many Europeans, had a record of staying in prison when fighting for freedom of Zimbabwe but ended up being that country’s president to-date many more presidents of several countries had first served prison terms but later became leaders of those countries.

On the other hand, Zambia has created a different his tory. Honorable Kenneth Kaunda became the first president of Zambia at  Indepence in 1964. Dr. Kaunda enacted tough laws and prison conditions were not improved. Opponents were not entertained and were given tough time.

 

After the introductions of multiparty democracy in Zambia, Honorable Frederich Chiluba, who was in the opposition, won the elections to become president? During Chiluba’s reign as president, Dr Kaunda fell victim of the harsh laws and was put in prison and tasted the bitter pill of bad prison conditions that he had himself put.

The experience was very bitter for Dr. Kaunda who shed tears. Many comrades of Dr. Kaunda including the late Mwalimu Julius Nyerere went to see him in prison and pleaded with Chiluba  to release him but was adamant to set him free for some time. President Chiluba did not want to release Dr. Kaunda from prison as he wanted him to feel the pinch of prisons’ bad life which Kaunda had himself made for others to suffer.

 

The tide has again changed as now it is Chiluba’s turn to feel the heat. The incumbent President of Zambia Levy Mwanawasa has the former Zambia president Chiluba out under house arrest and to-date his case is still continuing in court of law.

In Kenya it is the same story. Records show that one prominent Minister for Prisons gave harsh rules for prisons which included the removal of all mattresses and beds, privileges given to prisoners by then. However, turn of events took over. The minister fell victim of some indictments that saw him put in one of the prisons. He begged to be given blankets, a mattress and bed-sheets. Mockingly, he was reminded of his own Standing orders of removing the said items from prisons.

Likewise the Kenyan Commissioner for Prisons forbade prisoners from taking porridge with sugar. Turn of events took him by supprise as he found himself put in prison and he had to drink sugarless porridge, all this due to his former order that   prisoners should not take porridge  with sugar. Of course it goes without saying that the commissioner regretted his verdict and was a lesson to him

Olusugun Obasanjo

In Tanzania, the former Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Works, Dr. Mlingwa who was committed to Ukonga Prison by Kisutu Resident  Magistrate’s Court after  being found guilty of not cooperating with officials of the Prevention of Corruption Bureau (PCB) in explaining how he got his wealth and monies that he had put  in a bank . He was sentenced to five years imprisonment but came out on acquittal by the High Court of Tanzania.

Another example was former Secretary of Football Association of Tanzania (FAT) Aden Rage, who was  sentenced by  the same trial court to five years at  Ukonga Prison in Dar es Salaam for fraud. He was released on parole. What is the motive behind the lengthy prologue? Two lessons are there vividly to be learnt.

First not all who go to prison are useless, idiots or really guilty of offences charged with. Honorable Obasanjo and Honorable Mugabe and many more can give us very constructive and live testimony that prisons can come up with very prominent personnel that the world can benefit from. Nevertheless, it is in prison that many great discoveries and inventions have come up to prove the worthy of prison and prisoners.

Secondly, prisons are no body’s home and that anyone can be in at given time. The world, thefore, has to adhere to our call that at least prisons must be made better homes to live in. For that reason, IPRO makes a stern homes call for the care to be taken in handling prisons ad prisoners.

 

 

(Not translated)