There is a room at lusaka central police station called c5 which is specifically used for torturing people, some police officers have confirmed.

"This room has nothing in it except ropes hanging from the roof," one officer who sought anonymity said.

"They use it when they want to extract information from a suspect and as a way of punishing culprits though the constitution does not allow such a practice."

Some officers said they are allowed to torture people because some suspects do not reveal information unless beaten.

Another police officer from the same police station, who also sought anonymity, said torture is real though police deny it. He said in so many police stations and posts, officers from the Criminal Investigations Department (CID) torture suspects as they please in the CID rooms.

"In this Kampelwa system, you are inflicted with so much pain. They handcuff From Page 1

you and put your hands in between your legs with a rod across which is suspended on two tables. I worked with the CID for a long time and know what happens. We could take two tables and place a rod in between the tables and then tie a suspect’s hands and legs with a strong rope and leave him suspended before we started beating him up," he said.

He said it was first-degree torture because one was made to reveal non-existent things and most of them became confused.

"I remember torturing a man for six days because our "superiors" instructed us to do it. As at now, whips, shot batons and electric shock are still being used," he said.

The other type is where one is tied, a rod is put in the same way as described above and a rope is hang from the roof such that when one pulls it the person tied to it is left suspended in the air.

In support of torture, a female inspector told the Legal Resources Foundation (LRF) News the methods used were not torture but a way of punishing the suspects. She said this was so others would learn from them.

"I do not think it is what you call torture, we just punish them so that they do not do the same thing," she said.

She said suspending a suspect on two tables was not what actually happened.

"People exaggerate when they hear from those who have been victims. However, officers beat some suspects because they find it hard to carry on with investigations as most suspects behave in a disorderly manner," she said.

She claimed officers give suspects what they call "reasonable minimum force".

But other police officers expressed disappointment at the conduct of their colleagues.

A retired police officer disagreed with the inspector’s comments saying he worked in the service for 38 years and he knew Kampelwa torture was real.

"This torture is the first class kind of torture that officers use especially when investigating a criminal offence," he said. He demonstrated to the LRF News how the Kampelwa torture is conducted.

In his demonstration, the suspect’s legs are tied to the rod, which is then put on two tables. Due to the weight of the body, a person turns upside down and this exposes his back to the officers to beat him on it.

"By the time they finish beating him he would have agreed to committing the offence and revealed false information," he said.

Last month, a State House police officer, who is currently on suspension pending disciplinary charges, narrated to the LRF News how he was tortured by fellow police officers. He said some officers from Mosque Police Post approached him and asked him to accompany them to the police post in the presence of his wife.

He said when they reached the police post, these officers started beating him as he tried to find out why he was to be detained. He told them he was a police officer and no one was supposed to beat a person who is not charged with an offence.

This officer was detained on November 12, 2000, at about 15:00 hours and released the following day at 13:00 hours. He was charged with being in possession of stolen property.

According to him, he refused to sign in the Arrest and Prisoners Property Book (APPB) because it showed he was arrested for less than ten hours. He sustained injuries on the back and had a swollen face.

"It is true torture exists and police officers apply maximum force using both long and shot batons since they do it out of their own wish," he said.

Another victim, Charles Manase Manyika, 25, told the LRF News how he was tortured by Chiwempala Police Station police officers Chrispin Aujuwa, Stanley Simwanza and Banda in Chingola.

Manyika, now detained at Kamfinsa Prison, said on November 6, 1998, he was blindfolded, his hands and legs were tied and a cloth was put in his mouth so that no one could hear his screams.

He said the officers hanged him on a metal rod placed between two tables so that he could "swing". The officers beat him using long batons as they were trying to make him admit to murdering a person. Manyika sustained a broken leg as his patella fractured and a ligament of his knee joint was also torn.

All this happened when Manyika surrendered himself to the police after learning his family was put in custody on allegations that they knew his whereabouts.

A Lusaka businessman Emmanuel Mwale of Chelstone said his young brother was early this year tortured at Chelstone Police Station by some officers who forced him to name people allegedly involved in aggravated robbery.

He said the brother was put on a swing and suspended upside down, his head facing down and legs folded on the rod.

"My brother was tortured at this police station, not in the building where there are cells but in the next house which they use as offices. These offices are adjacent to each other and they have their CID room there. My brother was put on the rod placed between two tables and was beaten on his back," said Mwale.

He said when he questioned the officers about the beating, they refused saying the young brother was beaten by his cellmates because he did not obey their orders.

Another police officer from Sikanze Police Station confirmed the existence of the Kampelwa system.

"Torture is real, people who have been tortured will agree with me that it is real. I am saying what I see because I am a constable who is against the idea. My fellow officers at one time reported me to my seniors because I refused to suspend a suspect," he said.

Police spokesperson Lemmy Kajoba denied torture existed in the police service.

He said all those who claim to have been tortured do not say the truth.

However, he agreed police can use "considerable minimum force" if they have reasons beyond doubt that the person can help in giving out the required information.

"The police is only allowed to give reasonable minimum force, if they suspect the person can help them with investigations on a particular matter. Only those people who are angry can say anything even if they haven’t been tortured," said Kajoba.

He said if a person felt his rights had been violated by the police, they advise them to follow the legal channels.

Kajoba said no police officer was above the law and no one was allowed to torture a suspect apart from using the required force.

The foundation has been receiving cases of police brutality and some officers have been sued in their personal capacities.