Justice Action

The local community was promised jobs and economic stimulation to the tune of $10 million a year in return for bearing the stigma of being a prison town. However with as few 200 permanent jobs being offered at the prison and MP Matt Brown’s recent acknowledgement that as many as 40% of these jobs may not go to local people this level of stimulus seems unlikely. So although Nowra can expect all the stigma and consequences that come with playing host to the states newest correctional mistake it is unlikely to see the $10 million flow on stimulus the local community was promised when accepting the proposal.

Nowra is already a community that needs help. With high unemployment rate, less then 30% High School completion and little in the way of public transport Nowra is in need of many things, a prison however is not one of them. A TAFE college or community education could help people in the community prepare for employment and actually cut crime rates, improved public transport could allow these people to search for jobs in a wider area.

Rather then helping this disadvantaged community get back on its feet the addition of a prison in the local area promises to add to this burden. There will be large numbers of family and friends visiting prisoners, many of these people will be disadvantaged and some will need support when they are visiting. Some will move temporarily to be near their family member and will need social support and services.

There is likely to be the need for supported accommodation and transitional/emergency housing, which brings with it the need for increased services such as Centrelink and medical care both for prisoners, visitors and releasees. The Nowra and larger Shoalhaven community is already stretched to its limits for health care and social services but will undoubtedly be forced to absorb the extra pressure.

With evidence suggesting that prisons are more likely to breed crime than to cut offending rates it is not just Nowra that will feel the negative effects of this prison.

Limits of Incarceration

While the link between crime and incarceration seems logical, many studies have revealed that incarceration has a negative impact on crime rates. Research indicates that increasing the imprisonment rates may result in more crime, particularly amongst certain types of offenders.

The social and personal damage which is involved with incarceration serves to explain this finding. The imprisonment of offenders effectively amounts to society relinquishing its responsibility to deal with the problems at hand. By excluding the problems in this way, society is limiting its ability to understand the origins of crime and thus perpetuating its continuation.

In addition to this, it has been found that prisons often serve as colleges of crime for offenders, rather than rehabilitation centres. In this way, society's incarceration of offenders serves to fuel the very problem, which they sought to solve. The effect of this has inevitably been seen through the recidivism rate, which in NSW currently sits 3% above the national average at 42%.

The negative effect of incarceration on offenders is evident through the personal damage that the process fosters. United States research has proven that the growth of incarceration has had profoundly disruptive effects that radiate into other spheres of society. The persistent removal of persons from the community to prison and their eventual return has a destabilising effect that has been demonstrated to fray family and community bonds, and contribute to an increase in recidivism and future criminality . Moreover, Russell Hogg at the University of New England recognises that "incarceration destroys or disrupts the links individuals have with conventional domains of life, like family, employment, secure housing and so on, links whose fragility or fracture is usually a factor leading to the involvement in crime and whose rehabilitation is crucial to the resumption of a law- abiding existence. "

In this sense the necessity and desirability of developing an additional prison is questionable. The most recent figures from the NSW Bureau of Crime Statistics and Research show that crime rates for all 17 major crime categories were falling or stable over the 24 months to September 2010 both in NSW overall and in the Illawarra region, where the prison has been built.  

Despite this reduction in crime rates however, the imprisonment rates have been on the incline. Professor Paul Wilson, Chair of Criminology at Bond University puts this trend down to one thing: "The more prisons you build the more you are forced to fill them". As has been demonstrated historically the building of a new prison is more likely than anything else to increase the prisoner population.

The inclusion and use of solitary confinement cells in the prison could further traumatise prisoners and lead to mental health issues in the prison community. It is widely known that solitary confinement alone, even in the absence of other harsh treatment can cause significant mental health issues including hallucinations, delusions, depersonalisation and declines mental functioning. Solitary confinement is banned under Common Article Three of the Geneva Conventions as it amounts to cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment.

With the harsh effects of solitary confinement it is especially alarming that the cells were built to minimum standards despite the $155 million price tag and the excess space around the cells that could have been used to create more humane accommodation. There is no doubt that the harsh mental effects of this type of imprisonment are an impediment to the rehabilitation of prisoners and this surely has an impact on their ability to become responsible members of society upon their release.

Alternatives to Incarceration

The NSW government has claimed that the need to develop a correctional facility in the Illawarra region stems from the previous lack thereof and the benefit of providing a rehabilitation facility close to offenders' families. However, this rationale ignores any possible alternatives to incarceration and the benefits of such alternatives.

Restorative Justice is a pragmatic response to the shortcomings of the law and order system. It recognises that prisons often actually work as colleges of crime that increase recidivism, that tougher punishment does not deter crime and that the cost of the prison system is a massive social burden, which is highly ineffective. The Restorative Justice approach, promotes the repair, reconciliation and rebuilding of relationships in the community as a result of crime, focusing on transforming the offender. The NSW has recognised he importance of such programs but seems hesitant to to act on them in any substantial manner.

The Crimes (Sentencing Procedure) Act 1999 states that in NSW imprisonment is a penalty of last resort (s5). Therefore, the following community- based sanctions and programmes can be used as an alternative to incarceration :
-    Magistrate's early referral into treatment program
-    Drug court
-    Circle Sentencing
-    Intensive court supervision programme
-    Good behaviour bonds
-    Community service orders
-    Periodic detention
-    Home detention

The availability of some of these programs in rural areas is however more limited than in urban areas. In this way, the funding which has been dedicated to the development of the prison would have been more beneficial to the community if used to develop and maintain the facilities for these programmes.

Conclusion

The prison at Nowra is clearly inappropriate for not only the local community but also society in general. The harsh conditions that prisoners are exposed to only serve to complicate the rehabilitation process and prey on already vulnerable people. There is no reason to keep building such institutions when there are alternative sustainable programs that are yet to be given the time and resources they need to be successful.

For Nowra the prison will come to be a burden that it is not equipped to carry. The extra strain on resources and stigma involved is likely to exacerbate the problems they are already struggling to deal with. It is an unfortunate reality that many of the young people of Nowra could be the ones to fill the cells built in their own town.

It is time that society and the State Government realised that prisons are not the answer. Let Nowra be the last community to suffer this particular fate.