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Emu Plains Update 2/07 |
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More Lies Parliamentary Committee Hearing Findings
At the General Purpose Standing Committee No. 3 (Justice, Juvenile Justice) meeting held on 17 November 2006, Greens MP Ms. Rhiannon raised the concern that the Minister of Justices representative Mr. McLean misled the 28 August 2006 inquiry.
Mr. McLean essentially claimed that the inmates had requested the
changes regarding replacing day visits with the new scheme and were
furthermore involved in the decision and implementation process. In
reality, prisoners at Emu Plains were merely informed of the changes by
the Inmate Development Committee (IDC). As Ms. Rhiannon suggests,
being informed of these changes does not mean that prisoners actually
gave their approval for such modifications to occur. Instead,
prisoners have been bullied into stifling complaint by recent threats
from the GM of Emu Plains and have been forced to make appeals secretly
for outside support, highlighting just how problematic the mechanism
system for making complaints actually is. Another justification was
that removal of day visits was for the prisoners childrens benefits.
However, in a meeting that was held on 25 October 2006, one of the
major reasons given for the change in policy was the increase in
contraband found at Emu Plains. Clearly there are inconsistencies in
the DSCs position that must be addressed.
Mr. Grant, the Assistant Commissioner for the Department of
Corrective Services (DCS), attempted to justify the recent changes by
drawing the Committees attention to the fact that a survey was made
available to visitors before the changes in visitation procedure took
place. Mr. Grant maintains that only one person from the visiting
community suggested that they would be interested in participating in a
group that would have regard to the way visits operate. The proposal
for a committee is arguably a token gesture when one considers the fact
that many visitors face adverse situations themselves; it is thus
highly unlikely that they would have the time or resources to engage in
debate and consultation about the visiting hours process, especially
following the intimidation by DCS officials of their loved ones within
the jail itself.
Troubles with the new Booked Visits Procedure:
The Department of Corrective Services maintains that what the
separation of day visits into shorter periods ensures is a more orderly
way of organizing visits so family and friends do not have to wait for
a long time to be processed. Justice Actions consultation with
inmates and visitors regarding the existing [visitation] policy
reflects that the opposite of this objective is actually occurring.
Visitors can only stay for two-hour periods, and the processing stage
is cutting into valuable time that family and friends can spend with
Emu Plains inmates. Furthermore, the Booked Visits Procedure only
gives visitors a three-hour window three days a week (Tuesday until
Thursday) to actually schedule an appointment with their loved ones,
which may be an obstacle to those who work during the week or have
prior commitments to fulfil during this short time span. Glitches in
the computer system, coupled with resistance from staff members to
answer the phone and take the bookings, means that when individuals do
call and book they may nonetheless be turned away once they arrive.
Family and friends visits are terminated if they have to use the
toilet; often visitors choose to go home on the break instead of
standing outside. Prisoners on parole only get a one-hour boxed visit
with anyone who is not in their immediate family. This counters the
Department of Corrective Services claim that maintaining contact with
visitors is top priority in countering recidivism.
Another issue of significant weight at Emu Plains is the proposed
DCS initiative by Parliament to bring in all day visits during the week
for children instead of on the weekend. Clearly this proposal raises
grave concerns: many adults who provide rides for inmates children to
the prison have to work during the week, whilst others may not have
access to transportation to get out to visit if the family car is not
available. Most school-aged children are brought in by an extended
family member on the weekends to visit their parents. In practice,
this day pass means that a child will have to miss class to be dropped
off in the morning, while the carer has to leave for four hours in this
outer metro region only to return to pick up the child. The scheme
fails to take into consideration just how important it is for mothers
to visit with their children, whilst not disrupting the lives of family
and friends any more than necessary.
Under this new system, it is clear that this new policy will have a
detrimental affect on maintaining family relationships. It has been
suggested that close family contact between inmates and their families
has been proven to reduce recidivism upon prisoner release. Dr. Louise
Newman, Director of NSW Institute of Psychiatry, has expressed concerns
to Minister Kelly of the recent changes to visiting arrangements at Emu
Plains. She highlighted various reasons concerning the benefits of day
visits for inmates and visitors to the Department of Corrective
Services, and emphasized to the Minister that restricting contact with
children is not beneficial to a mothers mental heath or child
development.
Complaints Continue to be Veiled:
Despite the impact that split and booked visits have on prisoners and
visitors alike, all-day visits have not been reinstated at the Emu
Plains Womens Prison. Justice Action has contacted Belinda Neal,
Chief of Staff, in regards to setting up a meeting with the Minister of
Justice despite these attempts, the Minister has refused to enter
into any dialogue with Justice Action to date. Ms. Neal is justifying
the decision on the basis that visitors have not raised any complaints
on behalf of inmates or their families with either the Acting
Commissioner or the Minister about any aspect of the visiting regime
now in place at Emu Plains, and asserts that the Minister is
satisfied that the issue has been carefully managed by the department,
and there is no justification for him to intervene in the outcome of
the independent, operational decision-making processes.
Department of Corrective Services Kicks Justice Actions Community
Services Branch, Breakout, Out of the Community Service Orders (CSO)
Scheme:
On 20 November 2006, it was revealed that the DSC affirmed they would
no longer be allowing ex-prisoners to do their community service with
Breakout, an affiliate community organization to Justice Action.
Breakout was launched in 1984 as an employment program for those
recently released from prison, and has been hailed in the community as
one of the leading CSO agencies that has a strong mentoring program.
The DSC asserted that Breakout is no longer an approved CSO worksite,
but failed to give any reasons for their disapproval and have refused
to answer Breakouts queries regarding the cancellation. It is
interesting to note that the letter stating that approval was lost was
written by the same person from the DSC who is currently dealing with
the Emu Plains visiting issue. Coincidence? Over 25 years of
community service and prisoner support has regrettably been halted, and
Justice Action is being penalised for having a voice in standing up for
the women at Emu Plains and prisoners at large. Transparent mechanisms
must be implemented to ensure that justice is met.
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