The National Prison Monitor (NAPRIM), a local human rights and pro-democracy organization, has called on President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf to begin fulfilling her recent commitment to prisoners at the Monrovia Central Prison by ensuring that non convicted prisoners have their days in court for the speedy and impartial adjudication of charges brought against them by the Liberian Government.

The NAPRIM said that a huge number of inmates at the Monrovia Central Prison have not had their day in court, since they were incarcerated either weeks or months ago by Magistrate, Justice of the Peace and Circuit Courts.

"They were detained for lack of bond to secure their temporary release pending trial," the organization noted.

NAPRIM also maintained that other inmates at the Central Prison were also awaiting re-trial of their cases.

"They were awarded new trials after the empanelled jury who previously heard their cases came out with hanging verdicts, which automatically qualified their cases for re-trial," NAPRIM said.

Inn a press release issued in Monrovia, yesterday, NAPRIM said there is an urgent need for President Sirleaf to quickly intervene and swiftly tackle the situation in order to avoid the continuous violation of the fundamental human rights of prisoners at the Monrovia Central Prison.

NAPRIM suggested that the Liberian Government, through the Justice Ministry, could either drop charges against prisoners whose complainants have failed or refused to follow-up their cases for protracted periods or beyond the statutory provision, especially in cases of non capital offenses and set them free or to conduct jail delivery exercises to secure their release.

The local human rights organization emphasized that while it was not in favor of acts of lawlessness in the country, suspects should always be presumed innocent until adjudged guilty by a court of competent jurisdiction.

NAPRIM's press statement comes in the wake of President Sirleaf's acquaintance visit to the Monrovia Central Prison two weeks ago, where she committed herself to seeking avenues aimed at investigating and addressing the detention status of inmates at the Monrovia Central Prison.