Browsing by Author "Ahmed, Bashir Ali"

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    PublicationOpen Access
    Assesment of physical violence among prisoners in Mogadishu central prison, Somalia
    (Mount Kenya University, 2024-05) Ahmed, Bashir Ali
    Violence is defined as the wilful of use physical force on another person self or community resulting in trauma, psychological harm, or even death. It may be in the form of deprivation, emotional or sexual offense, or physical or psychological. In prisons, various forms of violence are committed globally. However, they are commonly done in secrecy making it difficult to establish. The main objective was to assess the causes and effects of physical violence in Mogadishu Central Prison (MCP) in Somalia. The target population for the study was prisoners in the prison. The study is necessitated by repeated appeals from some of the local and international human rights organizations that there is an unreported high level of violence within prisons in the country and that the situation in prisons is extremely serious warranting evaluation. The study assessed the causes and gravity of violence committed by prison wardens against the background of the training they had received. In addition, the research determined assault among prisoners themselves. A descriptive cross-sectional research design was applied to collect both quantitative and qualitative data. Systematic sampling was used to select prisoners, while purposive sampling was used to select key informants. The study used questionnaires, key informant interviews, and observation checklists as data collection tools. Quantitative analysis was conducted using SPSS version 27 and both Fisher’s exact test and Pearson’s Chi-square to test for associations and relationships between variables, after descriptive analysis had been done. Qualitative analysis was conducted using thematic analysis. The study found that 94% of the inmates were male whereas 6% were female, about 52% were married while 34% were single and 14% were divorced, and that most (46.4%) inmates were young aged between 18-25 years. On the other hand, the study determined that 68.5% of the prisoners had primary or no educational background, about 30% had small businesses, 17% were employed and 40% were unemployed. The overall prevalence of physical violence in the prison was 16.3%, with the majority of violence being conducted by convicts against other inmates, but also there were instances of violence committed against prison staff. The prevalence among inmates was 15% and prisoners against warden/prison staff was 1.3%. The most common types of physical violence were fist fights (11.8%), flogging (1.6%), use of weapons or other instruments (1.6%) such as razor blades, throwing shoes at each other, or use of finger rings and slapping (1.3%). The causes of violence were identified as misunderstanding (6.9%), disrespect (4.6%), fighting over resources due to overcrowding (3.6%), lack of rules and regulations (0.6%), and disregard of rules and regulations (0.6%). The effects of violence included behavioural changes (2.9%), insomnia (2.3%), anxiety (0.7%), and injuries (4.6%), with 1.6% of the injuries requiring medical attention at the prison medical facility. In improving the conditions in the prison environment, the study recommends training for prison staff, improving infrastructure to ease overcrowding, addressing socioeconomic disparities, and implementing policies to enforce compliance
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    PublicationOpen Access
    The Prevalence of Physical Violence, Drivers of Imprisonment, and Conduct of Prisoners in Mogadishu Central Prison, Somalia
    (East African Journal of Interdisciplinary Studies,, 2023-09-23) Gontier, Christopher; Ahmed, Bashir Ali; Odongo, Alfred Owino
    Violence is described as the intentional use of physical force against a person, oneself, or a group of people that causes trauma, psychological harm, or even death. It could take the shape of physical or psychological harm, deprivation, or emotional or sexual assault. Violence of many different kinds is committed in jails globally. However, they are frequently carried out in secrecy, which makes them challenging to establish. The target population for the study were prisoners and staff in Mogadishu Central Prison. A descriptive cross-sectional research design was applied to collect both quantitative and qualitative data. Systematic sampling was used to select prisoners, while purposive sampling was used to select key informants (staff). The study used questionnaires and key informant interviews as data collection tools. Quantitative analysis was conducted using SPSS version 27, and both Fisher’s exact test and Pearson’s Chi-square were used to test for associations and relationships between variables after descriptive analysis had been done. Qualitative analysis was conducted using thematic analysis. The study found that the overall prevalence of physical violence in the prison was 16.3%, with the majority of violence being conducted by convicts against other inmates, but there were also instances of violence committed against and committed by prison staff. The prevalence among inmates was 15%, and prisoners against warden was 1.3%. The most common types of physical violence were fist fights (11.8%), flogging (1.6%), use of weapons or other instruments (1.6%) such as razor blades, throwing shoes at each other, or use of finger rings and slapping (1.3%). The study highlights a concerning high prevalence of physical violence within Mogadishu Central Prison, primarily perpetrated by inmates against each other and occasionally involving prison staff. To address the issue, the study recommends a multifaceted approach, including heightened conflict recognition and resolution training for prison staff, increased investment in resources to alleviate overcrowding, and the establishment of rehabilitation and mental health programs to target the underlying triggers of violence