AWJAI’s teams up with University of Abuja Law Students:
AWJAI Brings Justice to Suleja Custodial Centre: Imagine the despair of spending 9 months in prison – not for a violent crime, but simply because you couldn’t afford to pay a N30,000.00 fine. This is the devastating reality for many, trapped in a cycle of poverty and injustice. For these individuals, their crime isn’t one of violence but rather being born into a system where justice has a price tag that many can’t afford.
At AWJAI, we believe that access to justice should not be a privilege reserved for the few but a fundamental right for all. Our Prison Intervention Project is a direct response to this injustice. We have launched an ambitious mission: to secure the release of 100 inmates by February 2025 through a combination of legal aid, representation, and financial support to pay fines and settlement sums. These efforts aim to break the cycle of poverty and ensure that individuals are not imprisoned simply because they cannot afford their freedom.
Our journey toward transformative justice began at the Suleja Medium Custodial Centre on January 22, 2024. Welcomed by the prison officials, our team -comprising lawyers, paralegals from University of Abuja Legal Clinic, and AWJAI program officers, returned on January 25, 2024, for a more detailed engagement. During this visit, we engaged with 21 inmates, addressing their legal needs, fines, and settlement sums.
This 12-month initiative is not just about freeing 100 inmates. It represents a larger goal: transformative justice. We aim to challenge the structures that make it so easy for the poor to end up in prison and so hard for them to get out.
This is only the beginning of a long and important journey. We invite you to stand with us and become part of the movement for change to break the cycle of poverty, injustice, and imprisonment. Together, we can create a justice system that is fair and accessible for all.
