WESTERN PROVINCE RUBAVU — The Director of National Prisons Service, Steven Barinda, has asked local leaders and other nationals to feel the plight of innocent children that are incarcerated with their mothers. Speaking recently at a children rights awareness campaign under the theme: “We need to live like other children,” Barinda noted that there were over 400 infants below four-years innocently living in various national prisons, because of the crimes of their mothers.The campaign was organized by “enfant chez toi” an organization that advocates for children’s rights. He noted that it was inevitable for the children to live in prisons because they still needed the attention of their mothers; however, it was possible to help them live a happy life if all citizens felt responsible. He observed that insufficient funding to prisons made it impossible for the children to get proper feeding and education in prison. Glorious Mukanzanire, who represented the Minister of Defense at the function, appealed to prison authorities to always seek families to take care of the children whenever they are three years. “Every child has a right to good family care and upbringing. It is everybody’s responsibility as citizens, to participate in the well upbringing of these innocent children who are suffering because of the crimes of their mothers.” she said. “I ask prison authorities to always endeavor to find families that can care for the children at three years because the Rwandan laws permit separation of infants from their mothers.” she added. Florence Uwimana, one of the mothers in Gisenyi main prison, said some of the children have suffered from malnutrition due to poor feeding. “A breast-feeding mother is supposed to feed well to produce enough breast milk for her child but the prison life and our feeding doesn’t allow that,” she said, appealing to government and other humanitarian organisations for help. Gisenyi prison alone has 49 children living with their mothers.Ends
