Madam, – On December 10th, 2008, we submitted our annual report to the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform. We also made the report available to the press. This is in line with our responsibility as chaplains to be a voice for those deprived of their freedom and to make matters of concern known, not just to the Minister, but also to the wider public.
The matters of concern raised in the report included the living conditions in many of our prisons where people sleep on floors and slop out after long hours of lock-up.
We raised the issue of overcrowding and suggested ways whereby this issue could be addressed. It could be addressed by increasing remission from 25 per cent to 33 per cent, which is already legislated for. It could be addressed by providing mental health care for the mentally ill as opposed to imprisoning them. It could be addressed by providing secure treatment centres for those who suffer from addictions and by providing alternative sanctions on those who fail to pay fines or are unable to pay debts.
The report pointed to international research that smaller more rehabilitative prisons are the way forward and called for a postponement of the building of Thornton Hall to allow an opportunity for a real and balanced debate on the issue of crime and punishment.
As a small nation with a relatively low rate of crime, we are at a critical stage in our criminal justice system. The provision of more and more prison spaces is not the way forward. Alternatives to imprisonment need to be explored. Imprisonment has failed and will continue to fail future generations of our people if alternatives are not explored at this time.
Voices need to heard. Informed decisions need to be made, decisions based on real and solid facts.
The public need to know what happens behind the walls and gates of our 14 penal institutions and how millions of taxpayers’ money is spent annually on this failing system. It is failing the victims, the offenders and society at large.
We have recently heard the accounts of the unspeakable damage inflicted on the vulnerable while they were in institutional care. Can we stand up as a society and acknowledge our responsibility to ensure that our prison system does not damage those detained there? If we take this responsibility seriously, we will demand the change in direction that is needed. – Yours, etc,