Podcast: Play in new window | Download
Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Amazon Music | TuneIn | RSS
This episode of the IN-CJ podcast, part of the Just Arts series, brings together John Scott and Xiaoye Zhang in conversation with Joost van Onna and Melle Smets. It explores a collaborative project developed in a prison in Lagos, where art, research, and legal practice intersect to address the realities of delayed justice and overcrowding.
The discussion begins by situating the contributors. Joost van Onna works within the Dutch Public Prosecution Service and academia, while Melle Smets is an artist working in participatory and socially engaged practice. Their collaboration combines institutional insight with creative experimentation, forming a mode of action research that responds directly to lived conditions rather than abstract models.
The core of the podcast focuses on their work in Nigeria, where a large proportion of prisoners are held on remand for extended periods. The guests describe conditions of overcrowding and uncertainty, where many individuals wait years for their cases to be heard. Rather than approaching this as a purely legal problem, the project sought to intervene through a structured, participatory process.
This took the form of an informal court developed inside the prison. Participants were invited to take on roles such as judge, prosecutor, and defence advocate, working through simulated cases that reflected their own legal situations. Supported by legal professionals, students, and theatre practitioners, the process enabled participants to better understand legal procedures and reflect on how they might engage with their own cases.
A notable aspect of the conversation is the recognition that informal systems of governance already existed within the prison. Prisoners had established their own hierarchies and dispute mechanisms, including forms of peer-led adjudication. The project did not attempt to replace these systems but worked alongside them, drawing on existing knowledge and social structures to build credibility and participation.
The role of theatre is discussed in practical terms. It functioned as a mechanism for trust-building and communication, enabling participants to explore different narratives about their cases. This created space for reflection, where individuals could reconsider how they presented themselves and whether they engaged with honesty or strategy. The process was shaped by the realities of prison life, including internal hierarchies and the need to negotiate influence and authority.
The contributors also reflect on the importance of working with local partners. Legal practitioners, universities, and community organisations in Nigeria were central to enabling access and ensuring the project was grounded in local knowledge. The discussion acknowledges that interventions of this kind require careful navigation of institutional and cultural contexts to avoid unintended consequences.
In terms of outcomes, the project is described as having both practical and developmental impact. Some participants experienced progress in their cases, including release or sentence adjustments. Alongside this, the team developed guidance materials and considered how the approach might be adapted or extended in other settings.
This podcast offers a detailed account of how alternative approaches to justice can emerge when legal systems are examined through the lens of participation and communication. It raises questions about how people understand the processes that govern them, and what changes when they are given the means to engage more directly with those processes.
The discussion ultimately points to a broader consideration: whether justice systems can be made more responsive by integrating experiential knowledge, creative practice, and structured dialogue into their development.