That 27 inmates at the Point Blanche prison successfully completed a series of Quick Skills and Recreational Workshops (see Friday/Saturday edition) is good news. The weekly sessions that began July 7 were intended to support their reintegration into society.
There had been some concern after Creative Leadership and Innovation Management Bureau (CLIMB) told Parliament earlier this month that its involvement in the Prison Education Program (PEP) would cease when the foundation’s contract with the Ministry of Justice runs out on December 1. Continued rehabilitation efforts remain important also due to the lack of detention space, leaving in total 300 years of sentences still to be served.
A new prison is being built with a price tag of US $52 million, which includes planned reforms. However, it will only increase the current number of 80 cells to 120 in phase one and 196 in phase two, despite earlier reports suggesting 300 would be needed, a figure considered financially unsustainable.
This means that although the future penitentiary will be able to accommodate many more than the current 86 men and six women, lack of capacity may become a problem again sooner rather than later, unless the number of people ending up behind bars is reduced. One way to do that is through investing in education and job-training.
The latter can help detainees from becoming repeat offenders and so-called revolving-door criminals. In this case each one counts.
