Botswana oldest pending clemency petition which has been awaiting a decision from President Duma Boko enters its fourth year. The prisons authorities told this publication that there has been no request for further information, no presidential directive and no warrant in relation to all pending applications
GAZETTE REPORTER
For more than three years, a death row inmate has remained in prison awaiting a decision on a petition that could determine whether he lives or dies, according to the Prisons and Correctional Services.
The petition, submitted in June 2023, is the oldest pending application for the Prerogative of Mercy currently before President Duma Boko, who has not signed a single death warrant since assuming the presidency.
The Prisons Service says it has not received any requests for additional information regarding the pending applications.
The President, or the relevant clemency process, may request information from the Prison Service about an inmate, including their conduct in prison, disciplinary record, rehabilitation, participation in programmes, health or psychological condition and family circumstances.
“No. We have not received any requests for additional information by the Presidency as the petitions are still subject to consideration,” the department said.
It further said: “There have not been any directives or warrants from the President in respect of any pending petitions for the Prerogative of Mercy.”
The disclosures place Botswana’s death penalty process in a state of uncertainty, with inmates sentenced to death continuing to live under the shadow of execution.
PRISONS SERVICE DECLINES TO JUDGE THE DELAY
The Prison Service declined to comment on how long such petitions have historically taken to be determined under previous administrations.
“We do not have the competency to judge the executive machinery of government. Therefore, we do not have a comment,” it said.
The response comes as the administration of President Duma Boko, a human rights lawyer and self-proclaimed abolitionist, faces the difficult question of how to handle the death penalty in a country where the courts continue to impose death sentences and where the ultimate power to grant mercy rests with the President.
LIFE ON DEATH ROW
According to the Prisons Service, “the daily routine of inmates under sentence of death includes religious services, the recording of requests and complaints, meals, psychosocial services, healthcare and exercise in the courtyard, among other activities”.
Pertaining to visits, the department said such prisoners “are also permitted to communicate with and receive visits from legal representatives, family members, spiritual leaders and other authorised persons.”
The Prison Service further revealed that it “provides psychosocial support, counselling and mental health assessments to inmates, including those under sentence of death”.
NO COMPLAINTS OVER PROLONGED WAIT
Despite the prolonged wait for decisions on clemency petitions, the department said it had not recorded any challenges associated with inmates spending extended periods awaiting the outcome of their cases.
“No. We have not recorded any challenges,” it said.
It also said it had not undertaken any review of the management of death row inmates or the administration of the death penalty process.
Asked whether there had been any recent directives, policy guidance or administrative instructions from supervising authorities regarding the management or treatment of inmates under sentence of death, the department said there had been none.
“No. We have not received any directives or instructions relating to treatment of prisoners under sentence of death as management of prisons and treatment of prisoners is our responsibility,” responded the Prisons Service.
A NATION IN SUPPORT OF THE DEATH PENALTY
Botswana remains a country where public opinion has traditionally shown strong support for retaining the death penalty, according to Afrobarometer studies.
There are approximately 19 inmates on death row. Six have exhausted their appeals before the Court of Appeal and are now awaiting the President’s decision on their petitions for the Prerogative of Mercy.