Madam, - I feel obliged to join the growing number of voices speaking out against the closure of Shanganagh Castle. In my capacity as a prison anthropologist, I recently chose to spend time there precisely because of its ethos, culture and realistic approach to reintegrating young people into mainstream society - so much so that I was holding it up as a centre of excellence during my most recent comparative visits to US prisons in Rhode Island and Washington DC.
It saddens me that the Irish Prison Service has chosen to go down the path of short-term gain without taking proper account of the unquantifiable good that is being done at Shanganagh Castle.
Denying young people like this the opportunity to benefit from a supportive move from closed to open conditions is damaging not only to the young people themselves, but to ourselves as responsible human beings and ultimately to society as a whole.
I can only plead for common sense to prevail and for those with the power and courage to change their minds to do so. - Yours, etc.,
Dr ANITA WILSON,
Lancaster University,
England.