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NAIROBI. – Kenya is drafting a Bill that will see its nationals serving jail terms in foreign countries to be repatriated to serve the remaining years or months in local jails.

“If bilateral agreements and treaties with the sentencing countries are put in place, then it will be made possible for Kenyans to be brought back to the country and charged here,” said a statement from the Attorney-General Professor Githu Muigai’s office received yesterday.

Githu Muigai is currently guiding the drafting of the proposals which will form the basis of implementing the Transfer of Prisoners Act 2015 which came into effect in October 12, 2015.

The statement said the Transfer of Prisoners Bill 2014 creates a framework for facilitating the exchange of prisoners pursuant to agreements between Kenya and other countries. “The Transfer of Prisoners Act is aimed at facilitating arrangements for the transfer of persons serving sentences of imprisonment for criminal offences committed in Kenya or countries outside Kenya, pursuant to subsisting agreements,” the statement said.

However, the conditions for transfer can only be made through an application by the two states through the Attorney-General or by an application from the prisoner to the AG for consideration but only if that person is a national of Kenya.

The Act was enacted in order to help transfer prisoners serving sentences in foreign countries as well as to ensure that they received humane treatment in line with rights and freedoms in Kenya and international conventions. – Xinhua.