SOAS Research Online

Abstract

This thesis examines juvenile justice in Zambia and shows that it is characterised by duality. The system has been critically examined in order to assess its historical development and to appreciate the traditional cultural aspects pertaining to child socialisation that may help to understand and improve juvenile justice, with regard to the operation of the police, courts, probation services and correctional institutions (Approved School and a Reformatory). It is shown that at certain stages of the criminal process there are instances of non-compliance with the provisions of the Juveniles Act, and that misconception of the Act leads to the ill-treatment of juvenile offenders. A review of literature on juvenile justice is conducted for the purpose of analyzing theoretical notions underlying the development of the juvenile justice systems in Western countries, because of the general influence of the West on the Zambian legal system and, in particular, the critical impact of English law. Completed case records of juvenile cases in the Lusaka magistrates' courts for the period from January 1991 to December 1992 are examined and analysed by: name, age, sex, offence charged, final disposition or reason for discontinuance, presentence report submitted or not, whether parent or guardian attended court and compliance with the Act. Views of correctional staff and inmates, judges and magistrates, senior police officers and government officials are presented. This study seeks to place the results in the context of the United Nations Guidelines For the Prevention of Juvenile Delinquency (Riyadh Guidelines 1990) and other international Instruments on the rights of child, taking into consideration the economic situation of the country. The thesis identifies weaknesses and defiaciencies in the structure and operations of the juvenile justice system and makes recommendations for reform (i.e. such as improved resources, better training, replacement of the correctional institutions and wider general recognition of the special problem faced by juveniles in contemporary Zambia).