Prisons Act

This Act may be cited as the Prisons Act.

This section defines key terms used in the Act.

The Minister may declare a building or place in Malawi to be a prison, and may also declare that it stops being a prison.

The Commissioner may direct that temporary prisons be provided for the shelter and safe custody of prisoners.

A prison service must be established in Malawi.

This section makes the Act apply to people who were serving in a prison service or department before this section started.

A Commissioner of Prisons must be responsible for administering the Act, subject to the Minister’s general or special directions.

The service must consist of the ranks listed in the Schedule, and the Minister may change that Schedule by Gazette notice.

The Commissioner must appoint prison officers as officers in charge. If a prison has no appointed officer in charge, the Minister may appoint a person to run it, subject to the Commissioner’s orders and any express limitation.

Prison officers generally cannot resign unless the Commissioner expressly permits it or regulations allow it.

The Government may set off money owed to a prison officer or other prison employee against money that person owes the Government when the person leaves service.

The Minister may appoint a committee of inquiry, made up of at least two people, to investigate and report on a prison or related matters.

The Commissioner controls prisons and prison officers and may issue standing orders, subject to the Minister’s directions.

The officer in charge of a prison must supervise and control all prison matters and is responsible to the Commissioner for the conduct, treatment, and legal observance of staff and prisoners under his control.

A prison officer must carry out assigned duties, exercise assigned powers, and obey lawful directions from senior officers.

Every prison officer is treated as available for duty at all times.

Prison officers must not do outside employment, take gifts or bribes, or engage in business with certain people unless allowed by the Commissioner; they also must not take part in politics unless the Minister gives written consent and directions.

A subordinate officer must not punish a prisoner unless the Commissioner or an officer in charge has lawfully ordered it.

Prison officers have power to arrest a person who may have escaped from lawful custody and take that person to a prison.

Prison officers may not enter a prison cell or ward at night unless accompanied by another prison officer, except in sickness or emergency; male prison officers may not enter cells where female prisoners are confined unless accompanied by a female prison officer.

The officer in charge may arrange for a prisoner’s measurements and images to be taken, and must make records as the Commissioner determines.

If a prison officer acted in obedience to a warrant signed by a judge or magistrate, the court must enter judgment in the officer’s favour.

A court generally does not need proof of a judge’s or magistrate’s signature unless it has reason to doubt it.

The Minister may appoint a prison medical officer from a registered medical practitioner, or if none is available, from a licensed person; if no appointment is made, a nominated local Government medical officer becomes the medical officer.

The medical officer must care for prisoners’ health, visit the prison daily when practicable or when called by the officer in charge, and report health-related concerns to that officer.

The medical officer must arrange medical examinations for prisoners on admission and before release, keep health records, and do any other prescribed duties.

The medical officer must observe, examine, and report on prisoners under sentence of death or charged with a capital offence.

The medical officer must make sure certain prisoners are medically examined every day the officer visits the prison.

An officer in charge may order a prisoner to undergo medical examination whenever the officer considers it necessary.

When a prisoner dies other than by lawful execution, the medical officer must enter specified details about the death in a register kept for that purpose.

If a prisoner dies, the officer in charge must immediately notify a magistrate or coroner and the prison medical officer, and arrange compliance with inquest law.

Judges of the High Court may visit and inspect prisons, and they may ask about complaints or requests made by prisoners while doing so.

The Ministers of Malawi Government must act as visiting justices for all prisons in Malawi.

Magistrates must act as visiting justices for prisons in the area where they normally exercise jurisdiction.

Visiting justices may enter the prison they oversee and inspect records, prisoners, food, rules, and complaints; a visiting justice who is also a magistrate may, if asked by the Commissioner or officer in charge, hear and determine a charge and use witness summonses and oaths.

A visiting justice must record remarks, suggestions, or recommendations in a book after each visit.

The Minister may appoint official visitors to any prison.

Official visitors must regularly visit the prison, inspect prisoners and prison conditions, and handle prisoner complaints or requests; female official visitors may visit only areas for female prisoners.

An official visitor must record remarks, suggestions, or recommendations in the prescribed book after each visit.

Certain religious ministers or accredited representatives may be admitted to prisons to visit prisoners and hold religious services, subject to approved visits and permitted times and places.

A probation officer, or a prisoners’ aid society representative with the Commissioner’s written permission, may be admitted to a prison.

Prison officers, except the Commissioner, commit an offence against discipline if they engage in any of the listed misconduct or neglect of duty.

A prison officer may arrest another prison officer without a warrant if the officer has reasonable grounds to suspect an offence under section 43.

A prison officer arrested under the Act may be confined in specified prison quarters while awaiting hearing of the case.

The Commissioner or an authorized senior officer may hold an inquiry into alleged disciplinary offences by a prison officer, and the prison officer must be present. If the offence is proved, punishment may be imposed, but senior-officer punishments need the Commissioner’s confirmation.

The Commissioner, a senior officer, or an officer in charge may inquire into alleged discipline offences by subordinate prison officers, and if the offence is proved, the offender may be punished with listed penalties. Some punishments over 20 shillings, and certain sanctions, need the Commissioner’s confirmation.

The Commissioner can change or cancel punishments and recommendations, and appeals on those decisions can go to the Minister.

An officer in charge may stop an offender’s pay only up to half of the offender’s monthly pay, and any stoppage above that level needs confirmation by the Commissioner.

A prison officer with inquiry powers may summon and question witnesses, require relevant documents, adjourn the inquiry, and administer oaths, but only with the Commissioner’s approval.

The Commissioner or investigating officer must stop proceedings for a section 43 offence if the existing punishments may be inadequate, and the case may be sent to a magistrate’s court or dealt with by the Commissioner or another officer.

The Commissioner may suspend a prison officer from duty in certain discipline or public-interest cases, and the officer’s pay and status are handled as set out in the section.

The Minister may dismiss a junior or subordinate officer from service if the officer has been sentenced by a court to fine or imprisonment for any offence, and only on the Commissioner’s recommendation.

A prison officer does not accrue pay for any day absent without leave or serving a sentence of imprisonment, unless the Commissioner orders otherwise.

A prison officer who is absent from duty for more than 21 days without reasonable cause is treated as a deserter and may be fined £100 or imprisoned for two years.

A prison officer or police officer who reasonably believes a prison officer has deserted may apprehend the deserter.

A person must not persuade, help, hide, or rescue a prison officer who deserts; doing so can lead to a £50 fine and six months’ imprisonment.

Prison officers, and certain other people, must not mutiny or encourage mutiny, sedition, or disobedience to lawful prison commands.

Prison admission is only allowed when the prisoner is accompanied by an authorized warrant, order, requisition, or similar document.

An unweaned infant child of a female prisoner may be kept in prison with the mother, subject to conditions set by the Commissioner, and may receive clothing and necessaries at public expense.

When a person is admitted to prison, the officer in charge must record the prescribed particulars about that person.

Prisoners must be searched on admission, and later when a prison officer of the same sex prescribes, with no opposite-sex person present.

The officer in charge must keep certain prisoner money and effects in custody, inventory them, and return them on release or discharge.

Prisoners must be separated by sex, kept in separate parts of the prison, and divided into classes that should be kept apart where practicable.

A person confined in prison must remain in the lawful custody of the officer in charge and follow prison discipline and the Act while imprisoned, even outside the prison precincts.

A court may order a prison officer to produce a prisoner in court when the prisoner’s attendance is needed for evidence, and the officer must comply.

Prisoners being taken to court may be held under police custody and supervision, and prison officers may hand them to police if escort staff are insufficient and police permission is given.

Police may interview prisoners in prison if required approvals and a written order are obtained; in some cases the prison officer in charge may allow an interview away from the prison officer’s sight and hearing.

Police and prison officers may move or release prisoners for criminal investigations or the interests of justice, and a prison officer must keep a prisoner in sight during police interviews.

The Commissioner may order that a prisoner be moved to another prison.

An officer in charge may confine a prisoner with mechanical restraint when necessary for safe custody, and only in line with prescribed regulations.

Rules for prisoners adjudged mentally disordered or defective: they stay in the detention place until lawfully discharged, and the Minister must act on discharge depending on whether the sentence is finished.

A sick prisoner may be moved to hospital, and hospital staff must report on the prisoner and take reasonable steps to prevent escape.

Time spent by a prisoner detained in a hospital or institution under sections 72 or 73 counts as part of the prison sentence.

Prisoners under sentence of imprisonment may be kept to labour in or outside prison, in employment approved by the Minister. Female prisoners may not be employed outside prison unless a medical officer recommends it, and then only for prescribed labour.

Unconvicted prisoners may choose light employment, and they must keep their cells and related property clean.

An unconvinced prisoner may be allowed to support himself and obtain certain necessities from private sources, at proper hours, subject to the Commissioner’s determination.

Prisoners must not give, hire, or sell food, clothing, bedding, or other necessaries allowed under section 77 to other prisoners.

A prisoner who does not provide his own food, clothing, and bedding is to receive the normal prison food, clothing, and bedding.

Prison officers may inspect items entering or leaving a prison and may stop and search suspected persons or vehicles. The officer in charge must be told immediately if a prohibited article or prison property is found, and may then seize and dispose of it under the Commissioner’s instructions.

A person must not bring, take, throw, remove, or give articles in connection with a prison or prisoner, and must not communicate with a prisoner, except as allowed by the Act.

A prison officer may arrest a person without a warrant in certain section 81-related situations, must hand the person to police custody, and the police member must then proceed as if the offence happened in his presence.

Prison letters or documents must be endorsed before removal, and people who find unendorsed prison correspondence must report and deliver it; publishing or transmitting such correspondence without the Minister’s authority is prohibited.

Any person who loiters within 100 yards of a prison or interferes with prisoners may be fined £25 and imprisoned for six months.

A prison officer or police officer may remove a person caught offending under section 84, and if the person repeats the offence after being removed, a prison officer may arrest the person without warrant.

A person who is not a prison officer must not possess, buy, receive, or help sell prison property/articles supplied to prison officers without lawful authority.

It is an offence to wear or use certain uniforms or decorations without authority, or to falsely claim to be entitled to wear or use them.

The officer in charge must display a notice outside the prison listing the acts prohibited under sections 81, 84 and 86 and the penalties for committing them.

A prisoner commits a prison offence by doing any of the listed acts or omissions.

Rules on how prison-offence charges may be heard, require the prisoner to be told the charge and heard in defence, let the Commissioner delegate hearing power, and stop double punishment for the same act or omission.

A prisoner found guilty of certain prison offences may receive specified punishments, and some imprisonment terms start only when the current sentence ends or when the award is made.

A prisoner convicted of a prison offence may receive specified punishments, with extra rules for corporal punishment and for prisoners aged 16 or older.

Limits apply to solitary confinement with penal diet and reduced diet for prisoners found guilty of a prison offence.

A person, other than a prisoner, must not help a prisoner escape or try to escape, or do anything intended to facilitate the escape.

A person who harbours or employs a prisoner knowing the prisoner is unlawfully at large is liable to a £50 fine and six months’ imprisonment.

Corporal punishment for a prison offence may be awarded under sections 91 or 92 only if the offence falls within specified section 89 offences or is a third or later offence under section 89.

Some prisoners cannot be sentenced to corporal punishment for a prison offence.

When corporal punishment is imposed for a prison offence under section 91 or 92, the number of strokes must be specified and may not exceed twelve.

A sentence of corporal punishment awarded by a court must not be carried out until it has been confirmed under the relevant law.

Corporal punishment must be carried out with a cane of a type and in a manner approved by the Minister.

Corporal punishment may not be carried out unless a medical officer first examines the prisoner and certifies fitness, and that medical officer and the officer in charge are present during the punishment.

A medical or prison officer may stop the rest of a corporal punishment sentence if they think it would cause more serious injury than the sentence contemplates.

A sentence of corporal punishment must not be carried out in instalments.

A prisoner sentenced to death must be held safely in a prison, kept apart from other prisoners if possible, and watched constantly day and night.

Most people may not access a prisoner under sentence of death. Limited access is allowed for certain prison and religious officials, people authorized by the Commissioner, and visits to the prisoner with consent and reasonable conditions.

Executions must happen at prisons specified by the Commissioners, with required officials present and a medical certificate process after the execution.

Some convicted prisoners may earn sentence remission for satisfactory industry and good conduct, and the Commissioner may restore remission lost or forfeited.

The Commissioner may recommend remission to the Minister, and the Minister may then recommend remission to the President if he thinks fit, based on the prisoner’s meritorious conduct or mental or physical condition.

This section keeps most of the former Part XIX in effect for certain people covered by an existing licence to be at large, and lets some of them earn remission by good conduct and industry.

The Minister may release a life prisoner on licence, set or change licence conditions, and later recall the prisoner to prison.

The Commissioner must file prisoner reports every four years for life prisoners or those serving more than seven years, send the report to the Minister if the prisoner was sentenced for an offence, and comply with presidential instructions on pardon or sentence reduction when requested reports are involved.

The officer in charge must ensure prisoners under his control are discharged from prison promptly when they become entitled to discharge.

Most prisoners must be released by noon on the day they are entitled to be discharged, unless they are imprisoned for non-payment of debts.

If the Commissioner directs it, a discharged prisoner’s travel expenses to the place the Commissioner तय determines may be paid from money provided by Parliament.

An officer in charge must give the High Court, at the start of each criminal session, lists of unconvicted prisoners and detained witnesses.

The Commissioner may offer rewards for information that leads to the capture of escaped prisoners, and people who provide such information or help apprehend an escaped prisoner may be paid expenses and a reward.

If the President pardons a person sentenced to death on condition of imprisonment, that person is treated as if the court had sentenced them to that period of imprisonment.

People sentenced by a court in a country covered by a Minister’s declaration may be sent to Malawi for imprisonment and detention, and the sentence is treated as if it were from a Malawi court.

The Minister may sign a warrant to remove certain prisoners or detainees from Malawi to another country or territory, where they may be held or confined until sentence ends or the Minister decides otherwise.

The Minister may allow a prisoner to be absent from prison in writing for a specified period.

The Minister may make regulations for prison administration matters and may set penalties for breaching them.

This transitional section says references to a prison in written laws include prisons established under this Act, unless a contrary intention appears; it also deems certain prisoners to be prisoners for this Act.