As Labour’s Women’s Affairs Spokesperson I visited Arohata Women’s Prison with my colleague, Labour’s Justice Spokesperson Charles Chauvel, this afternoon. I have never been in any prison before in any capacity and I have to say the visit has really got me thinking.
I wasn’t sure what to expect but one thing I can say is that anyone who calls a prison a holiday camp or a luxury hotel has got it completely wrong. The facilities were basic and functional.
After a warm Maori welcome we were shown around the prison. The highlight was talking to a group of about twenty five women who are part of the prison’s Drug Treatment Unit (DTU). The DTU operates a therapeutic community model with a structured programme operating in a community environment with community expecations, community support and evalutions. Charles and I asked the women to tell us the things that would reduce the chances of them reoffending when they go back into the community and what things might have stopped them offending in the first instance.
I think the women were pleased and surprised to be asked these questions by MPs and I was really impressed with the answers. One area that stood out is that in Arohata the women have an opportunity to learn and to gain qualifications. This is clearly valued by the women -this was stated by both the inmates and the staff. They want to keep learning and to use that learning to get jobs and to help their children.
What is also obvious is the strong desire of the group to deal with their addictions. Arohata is the only women’s prison that operates a DTU and so many of the women have had to move away from Christchurch and Auckland women’s prisons and proximity to their families to take part in the programme. They clearly make the link between violence, drugs, alcohol and their offending.
The women who spoke clearly want to move forward, to get jobs and to get their children back. They want to be given a chance by employers. They are also worried about what support there will be once they leave Arohata.
Some things that were reinforced for me were:
- we need to focus on the causes of crime and not solely on punishment
- we especially need to consider whether imprisonment is the best response to all of the situations people are currently imprisoned for
- the need for drug treatment programmes in all our prisons and in the community
- the importance of life long learning opportunities, to name a few
Charles and I have committed to going back and continuing the conversation. We are intending to visit the other women’s prisons too.
How about weaning them off welfare & making sure their time is filled with things like work and being reponsible for the things they do like looking after the children they bear to any number of different fathers. The underclass of NZ needs to be sorted out. This isn’t having a go at the Labour party, this is something that all NZders would benefit from, far more than any benefit increase or tax decrease or CGT etc. Stop the boozing, druggies and layabouts and most of the problems will go away.
Rehab does sound good!
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They clearly make the link between violence, drugs, alcohol and their offending.
Stating the obvious but good to hear from the ‘horses mouth’ so to speak. A shame self control wasn’t also mentioned though.
It’s telling that the inmates concern was around what they will face when leaving prison rather than about being inside. It indicates that the degree of structure and control felt by the inmates (either imposed or encouraged) is a stabilising influence.
Its unfortunate that generating the conditions for emotional self worth and understanding social stability / personal responsibility have to be via an incredibly expensive policing, judicial and corrections system though.
It is not possible to have a serious and rational debate in the public through the media on law and order in this country any longer. About a decade or so back, the police media managers and the crime and police reporters, and their respective bosses, cut a deal over access and style. Since then, if it bled, it led, and the cops were the heroes and the accused were guilty. Justice values were replaced with ‘news values’ in reportage, ACT set up Sensible Sentencing, and off we went. Smells a lot like the venal deals being uncovered in the UK at present. Or is it just my cynicism in overdrive?
It still shocks me to think about the way we look after each other in this country. When I read things like the first post, it saddens me to see that there are many people in New Zealand who view human beings as ‘underclass’ which automatically puts a line in the sand and further creates this us and them mentality. The underclass in not the problem, its all of us ‘above’ and around them that need to look hard at what we do in our everyday lives to contribute to our fellow people in our communities ending up in prison. Many are great at putting the blame and utilising terms such as ‘layabouts’ ‘druggies’ when we as a society create these stereotypes in the first place. Wake up New Zealand – when will people start to turn and face the mirror rather than expressing points of view from an obviously privileged perspective. Go into a prison and see and feel for yourselves. Its sad. We need to rethink how we look after each other. I am working on this, are you?????
The “facilities were basic and functional”. Wrong the facilities are a nightmare and a health & safety risk. Way past their used by date (Arohata Prison). The programs are under-resourced and there are long waiting lists for the programs. Why have we got a new women’s prison in Auckland and it doesn’t contain a DTU unit? Why are the ladies going to parole without having done the programs because the men’s jails are getting all the funding? Why are the men getting parole quicker (because of overcrowding)? Why are there no AA and NA meetings in the mainstream wings, whilst inmates are waiting to go into DTU? Why are they left to sit and watch tv and do nothing? What is wrong with the system when it costs $90k to house 1 inmate and they get no help for their release. No halfway houses for women inmates on release. We are not allowed to keep Housing NZ houses if we are short term. So we go back to nothing on the outside. My stand-down period for Steps To Freedom ($350) was a week with no money. I still had to pay 4 weeks rent and 4 weeks power (with no income in jail because WINZ stops your benefit on remand). I have paid numerous amounts of Offender Levy Fees and my fines are never going down because I pay $5.00/week out of my benefit to cover it. Yes I seem to be a recidivist but there is more to it especially when the Police are my victims!!!