Covid-19: Beira court sentences three to prison for disobedience

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Covid-19: Beira court sentences three to prison for disobedience

12:32 CAT | 24 Jul 2020

Mushim I. and one of the other two defendants in a police vehicle. [Photo: DW]

The owner of a Koranic madrasah and two other defendants have been sentenced to prison for breaking state of emergency regulations and confining 37 teenagers in the same room. Their lawyer considers the sentences too heavy.

The 37 girls were said to be participating in an educational session on Wednesday (22-07), when they were caught by the police in flagrant violation of the rules of the state of emergency. The authorities arrested the teenagers, but freed them a little later.

But Mushim I., owner of the madrasah on the outskirts of Beira, capital of Mozambique’s Sofala province, was sentenced on Thursday (23-07) to 15 days in prison for failing to obey presidential state of emergency regulations, and must pay a fine of 4,500 meticais (around €55.00) to the Mozambican State for conversion of the sentence.

Sentence was read by Judge Ana Muchacha: “The bench of the fourth section of the Judicial Court of Beira, on behalf of the Republic of Mozambique, decides to sentence the defendant to a sentence of fifteen days in prison for the crime of disobedience, envisaged and punished by Article 6 of Presidential Decree 21/2020 of 26 June and Article 44 of Decree 51/2020 of 1 July.”

In addition to the owner, two defendants, who allegedly went to the school to assist family members prepare a test that would be given later, were also convicted. Both were sentenced to seven days in prison, and must pay a fine of 2,100 meticais (about €25.00) to commute their sentences.

Studentcvs.dw_ — *Students were arrested, but later released*

Sentences contested

The defence has however challenged the ruling, lawyer Hamid de Carvalho claiming that the sentence handed down was too heavy, because many of the teenagers in the madrassa actually lived there.

“This presidential decree does not limit the functioning of accommodation centres for needy and disadvantaged people,” he said.

“There was in fact a lapse in allowing certain external students to be present at the site. However, those present were, for the most part, boarding students,” he explained. “I think the judge should have taken into consideration that this presidential decree does not limit the functioning of the counselling centres for people in need,” he argued.

Mozambique has since April 1 been in a state of emergency imposed to slow the spread of Covid-19, of which the country has already registered more than 1,500 cases. Cabo Delgado, Maputo and Nampula are the main foci in the country, but Sofala province has seen 34 positive cases so far.

Source: Deutsche Welle