For Centre:
PRACTICAL AND beautiful items produced by prisoners and officers of  the five prisons in Guyana took the spotlight recently at exhibitions that were  part of the  Guyana Prison Service (GPS)’s  27th  Prison Week celebrations. The exhibitions took place at the National Library on Church Street and the Georgetown Prison Sports Club on Camp Street under the theme, ‘Celebrating Collaborators for Corrections’.
Superintendent of Prisons, The Reverend Fay Clarke, who is also Officer in charge of Training and Correction, said the exhibition showcased the work of   prisoners from the Georgetown, Timehri, Lusignan, New Amsterdam and Mazaruni prisons.
Mazaruni put out a display of nibbi furniture, Amerindian craft and wooden handicraft, while Georgetown contributed more furniture, as well as photo frames and stunning tie-dyed pieces. Timehri also contributed furniture, and these pieces, as well as those from the other prisons were complemented by the crocheted doilies and embroidered linen bed sheets and pillow cases produced by the women of the New Amsterdam prison.
The Lusignan prison put paper and plastic to good use with an amazing paper swan set along with teddy bears made from plastic that were actually cuddly. One of the highlights of the exhibition was a built-to-scale model of a mansion made by Timinee Cort. The semi-completed mansion drew oohs and ahhs from visitors, including schoolchildren who took photos of it with their mobile phones.
Persons taking part in the event included Literacy Officer from Mazaruni Prisons, Ms Faye Cornelius; Teacher at the female prison in New Amsterdam, Ms Beverly Ogleton; and   craft teacher at the Georgetown Prisons, Mr.  Lloyd Katow.
The proceeds of the works will benefit all parties, since a percentage will go to the prisoners themselves, the prisoner’s incentive scheme, and the maintenance of the prisons.
Clarke said that the exhibition is expected to grow from strength to strength, as workshops are being expanded and technical and vocational staff are being recruited. The programme, she said, is not currently compulsory as it is only being used for evaluation purposes. “If they have an anger problem, or if they are a sex offender or illiterate, special programmes are designed for them,” she said, adding that it is interesting to see lives change.
Stressing this point, she cited as an example the prisoner who learnt to play the keyboard and who gave a remarkable performance at a service held at the Camp Street jail chapel earlier.
At the service, guest speaker, The Reverend Alex Graham plugged for communities to support the efforts of services like the Guyana Prison Service, noting it is his belief that ‘communities’ have the power to reduce crime, and to transform criminals to enable society to become safer, not by building more facilities in which to hold people who affect us, but by bringing the transformative power that we have to our communities, to our families, and to our inmates.
At the event, he pointed out that a fact that cannot be changed is that the person who is violated will always be the victim, but also suggested that the perpetrator can also be considered a victim because, on committing the act, he becomes less than God created him to be.
He remarked that “transformation is critical, and where the crimes have been committed, restoration is critical.” Graham advised the inmate population that they should not interpret his message as condoning their behavior, but rather they should now view prison as a place where they can be transformed, in order that they can lead a better life when their freedom is granted.
Minister Rohee, who has overall responsibility for the Prisons, in a message read by Ms. Winnie James, an employee of his Ministry, implored the inmates to seize all opportunities available to them to enhance their personal development.
The message made mention of the ongoing process of modernization of which the GPS is a part, and noted that the GPS is part of the Criminal Justice Institution (CJI) and therefore must develop its capabilities to deliver more secure and rehabilitative environments.
The message said that the Ministry has been making great efforts to improve the conditions within the prison including a general improvement of inmates’ accommodation through the construction and rehabilitation of buildings; improvement of inmates health care which is supported by the Ministry of Health outreach programmes; development of structured rehabilitation programmes with special emphasis on the provision of vocational skills and welfare services to inmates, and collaboration with external agencies to develop the agricultural potential of the GPS.
Also, during the year, the MOHA reviewed the GPS Strategic Plan and currently a consolidated blueprint is being considered to position the Agency on a path of reconstruction of its management systems, an approach that is envisioned to allow the Prisons to be a more effective member of the CJS.