Tanzania prisoner gets law degree

A man doing time in an overcrowded jail has become the first prisoner in Tanzania to be awarded a degree.

As Harun Pembe Gombela was unable to go to last weekend's graduation, the Open University's chancellor went to the Dar es Salaam prison to hand it over.

Wearing a black and purple robe and a black cap, Gombela said he was over the moon to get his law degree.

"I chose law because I want to assist - as many prisoners are convicted because the prosecution framed them," he said.

"They call him saviour because his main responsibility in prison is to write appeals for his fellows"
Daphina Labenta Mabagala,
Open University tutor

Equally overwhelmed were Gombela's two daughters, who were allowed to attend the ceremony in the officers' mess of Ukonga Prison.

"I want to be like my father, I want to graduate," said his 23-year-old daughter, who was seven when her father was jailed.

No-one was prepared to reveal the nature of Gombela's crime or the length of his sentence, which he started 16 years ago.

'Role model'

For the university's vice-chancellor, Tolly Mbwete, it was a memorable day.

"I must admit, at the beginning the management at the university wasn't even aware he was a prisoner," he said.

"Until he wrote a letter to us telling us about the difficulty he had in getting materials and where he was."

Lecturer Daphina Labenta Mabagala said her former and unlikely student was "a role model to other prisoners".

"They call him 'mkombozi', which means saviour, because his main responsibility in prison is to write appeals for his fellows," she said.

"Up to now he's succeeded to write about 90 appeals and his colleagues have been freed from prison."

University officials said the prison gave Gombela support during his studies.

"The prison officials were very positive and we didn't face any difficulty," Mrs Mabagala said.

Tanzania's Open University, which opened in 1994, has decided to start a library for the Ukonga Prison as an incentive to get more students from all walks of life to take up distance learning.

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