Evil has been part of human society from time immemorial. However, the extent and the severity of evil have varied widely, as have its areas of prevalence. For example, although there is much violent crime in the United States, there are still places in that country where one has no need for locking one's house at night and where one can leave the keys in one's car without fear of anyone driving off with it.

The modes and the severity of punishment for acts which society considers evil have also varied widely throughout history, and similar crimes may meet with very different punishments, depending on the prevailing culture and/or religion.

It is very important that societies examine their systems of justice from time to time, especially in the light of human rights; if they fail to do so, the concept of "equal justice for all" may easily become a mockery.

In this issue of Wajibu, our contributors have examined the system of justice in place in Kenya and in other parts of Africa and have found it wanting. Scrutinising their findings, one cannot help but come to the conclusion that there are some things terribly wrong in the way justice is done in our societies.

First, there appears to be a definite bias with respect to how crimes are regarded and punished. For example, economic crimes such as corruption, although they do very great harm to society as a whole, are regarded very leniently and are often not punished at all. Second, with respect to other misdeeds, whether one is punished or not depends very often on the position one holds in society and on one's economic clout; for example, whether one can afford to hire a bright lawyer. This means that the poor and•until very recently•those not politically correct bear a disproportionate share of punishment. Third, the penal system in place is so brutal that those who end up behind bars are punished twice: they are deprived of their liberty not only but also of their human dignity. This is on account of the fact that prisons in many African countries, certainly in Kenya, are run more like concentration camps than as places for the rehabilitation of certain members of society.

The articles in this issue aim to shed some light on the underlying reasons why things have gone so wrong in the area of crime and punishment. However, they also show alternatives to the present system. As is evident from the book review, some of these alternatives have their roots in traditional systems of justice. All the alternatives aim to bring about greater equity in the justice system as a whole.

What we can learn, especially from the survey on prison conditions in Kenya, is that• whether we have been direct victims of the system or not• none of us can wash our hands of these problems. In addition to many other inequities in our system of justice, more than a thousand people die in our prisons every year! We can do no better than repeat the question which ends the KHRC survey: What are we going to do about it?

Note to our readers

This is the last issue of this year and you will therefore find a subscription form enclosed. If you have not already renewed your subscription for 1998, please be so kind to fill it in. Subscription information is on the verso of the front cover. Unfortunately, due to an increase in printing costs as well as in postage, we have had to increase the cost of subscription. We trust you will understand and will continue to support the journal. As we have said before, the subscription only pays for the production and distribution of the journal; since Wajibu is a not-for-profit effort, the other costs are borne by the volunteers who believe in the value of the journal. If you should wish to lighten their burden, why not become a sponsor of Wajibu? We are setting a target the coming year of 100 sponsors: will you be one of them?

If you have so far not been a subscriber, we invite you to become one or to take out a subscription for a friend. Another way to spread the influence of Wajibu is to subscribe for a secondary school or college of your choice.

In connection with lightening the burden of the Editorial Board, we would here like to acknowledge the contribution of the Management of Meridian Court Hotel, who have been facilitating the meetings of the Board since June this year, free of charge. Our heartfelt thanks to them.

TEN-YEAR INDEX TO WAJIBU. If you are among those of our readers who use the back issues of the journal for purposes of research, you will not want to miss the 10-year index (1985-1995) of Wajibu. You will find the index, by author, title, as well as subject, a very useful tool. The cost of the index (appr. 10 p.) is Kshs 150.00. Should you wish to obtain it, please add this amount to the cost of your subscription and indicate clearly for which purpose you have added it. The Board of Wajibu is very grateful to Ruth Thomas, one of its members, for preparing this index.