Prison or Tagging
The debate this morning on BBC Radio 5 is about punishment for crimes.
Most seem to be in favour of more prisons, but would we accept the extra taxes and where would we build them and where would we find the prison officers.
Having been over a prison recently, the biggest problem would appear to be lack of education and lack of jobs when they come out. In fact most of those I met, were extremely courteous to me and all the officers and others that worked and visitors. So the basics are there, it just needs to motivate them in the right way.
I am constantly reminded of the book, Menace to Society by Bill Fletcher. Fletcher had been in minor trouble for many years and had had all sorts of punishment. None had worked. In the 1960s, he ended up in Bow Street Magistrates Court in front of a Stipendiary Magistrate, who said he was going to give him the worst punishment he ever had. He let him go into the care of The Apex Trust, an organisation that rehabilitated offenders and still do. They taught him to read and write and he ended up as the doorman of the Shaw Theatre in London. I don’t think he was ever in trouble again.
I would agree that many offenders are beyond reform. On the other hand, a lot are good people underneath it all and with the application of a bit of training and a job, they can be set on the straight and narrow.
The Anonymous Widower 
There are many people for whom a stay in prison on the best thing that happened to them. They come out better educated, and often clean and sober as well
Comment by liz | June 14, 2012 |
The jail, I went over has a site-wide recycling scheme and they train prisoners to sort and pack all the rubbish produced It is very popular work and a lot would like to do that sort of work when they leave.
I suppose with some of them, it’s the first time, they’ve ever created something that they can see is positive.
Comment by AnonW | June 14, 2012 |