By Michel Outridge

EVERY year around this time, the Pepperpot Magazine highlights how Christmas is spent behind bars and this year, the team visited the Mazaruni Prison, Essequibo River where several inmates shared their experience.

“This place is nothing like home,” said inmate Kelvin Josaga Singh. “You can never get used to life here but you must condition your mind to serve your time and get out. At Christmas we does get a special meal, all the foods we usually get at home, so you are not missing much and once you behave and work it is all good.”

Singh, who also sang a song for the visiting team, has been incarcerated since 2016 and for him, it’s been hard adjusting to prison but he is determined to make it out.

The 30-year-old said he will participate in the friendly game of dominoes with other inmates and they will try to make each other happy because it is always sad especially at this season without family.

Singh, who is a barber by profession, added that he keeps busy by cutting hair and is also a tattoo artist. He said that he will also sing a song or two for the holiday, one of which is called “Better Days”- a mix of rap and gospel.

He is from Berbice and is hoping his family will visit him for the holidays so they can reconnect and whatever goodies they bring he is willing to share with others.

Singh told the Pepperpot Magazine he is looking forward to eating cake and having some ginger beer

Trying to be comfortable 
Michael Abrahams said the officers try to put things in place for them to be comfortable and have a good Christmas by preparing good food and beverages and they have some activities he will partake in.

They have a concert and he will assist in getting the group to practice their songs and will provide guidance in terms of helping them to control and lift their voices.

Abrahams told the Pepperpot Magazine that he is from the city and he is allowed phone calls and that’s how he would connect with family and is of the hope they will come for the holidays to see him.

“In jail one of the things you miss most is being around family and at Christmas, it is often difficult to cope but being here you have to try,” he said.

Abrahams related that they don’t have a choir but they have a hall where activities are held and they use that area as the chapel, as well.

The prisoner added that he is doing carpentry, plumbing, art and craft and sheet metal classes in the Trade Shop at the prison.

Abrahams said Christmas is a lovely time of year and it is one of his favourites and in jail he will make the best of it by caring and sharing with his fellow inmates, adding that it is different from the rest of the year, because of the activities and foods they are served.

Lifting each other’s spirits
Garfield Parker, a man with a solemn face, is one who does not smile much, though it seemed that he came quite close to doing so during this interview.
He stated that he worked in the kitchen last year Christmas and helped to prepare the meals for that day which was good and no doubt this year will be the same.

“Things here have improved a lot because we getting black cake, pepperpot, bread and drinks too like regular folks and we make merry like it supposed to be to lift the ‘spirits’ of each other in here as much as possible,” he said.

Parker explained that he used to be a bus driver and when he was a free man he never had the time to celebrate Christmas because he used to be on the road ‘hustling’.

He is, however, looking forward to ushering in the New Year with his family since he is expected to get out around then.

Parker works with the Medical Officer in the prison and has been behind bars for the past 16 months and promises to spread joy by helping others.

Keeping busy
Mark Opie was the next prisoner the Pepperpot Magazine spoke with and he is an ever-smiling fellow, who seems cool and calm.

He is originally from Lethem and it is his first Christmas in jail. There, he has two close friends but he is hoping to get out Next Year.

Opie has been in prison for the past seven months and works as a hard labourer. At the upcoming Christmas concert, he will recite a poem for his peers.

The last inmate that the Pepperpot Magazine spoke to was Mahesh Hassan, a conscious young man from the Essequibo Coast, who explained that he doesn’t have much family.

He pointed out that it is his second Christmas in jail and he is the front gate attendant and he does what he has to survive in prison.

The 28-year-old seemed pleased to report that he will be finishing his time in April next year and with his good behaviour he is hoping to get some remission to leave prison even earlier.

For the holidays, Hassan said he will eat whatever is prepared and presented at lunch and breakfast in which the officers are present.

“Me nah mek styles pon food, me ah eat everything except pork and in here it is alright once you behave and work,” he said.

Inside the Mazaruni Prison
The Pepperpot Magazine had a sit-down with, Assistant Superintendent of Prisons, Gornell David, who related that the Mazaruni Prison is divided into two sections, Sibley Hall which for first offenders and the Level Two Cell Block, a maximum security facility for convicted prisoners, some of whom are serving long sentences.

David added that Sibley Hall Prison is designed for first offenders and they found out that it is easier to control prisoners housed in this section and they separate them because they don’t have to mix with convicted inmates.

“We have a lot of youths here and we incorporate them in the relevant classes since most of them are school drop-outs and I can attest to the vibrant training programmes we have here at Mazaruni Prison,” he said.

He stated that they have skills training for inmates in the Trade Shop and classes for anger management, among others.

David reported that the Level Two Security Block is an area for hardened criminals and it is a maximum security cell block.

He noted that they have a staff compliment of 20 and he has been at the location since 2000 and he would normally spend Christmas there but this year he will spend Christmas at home and the New Year at Mazaruni Prison.

David stated that annually they prepare special meals for inmates and officers would have breakfast and lunch with them.

In addition, they grant inmates calls to their relatives and family members and try to bridge the gap between inmates and relatives. Twice a year, there is also a Bonding Visit, one of which occurs on December 21 where relatives can visit the prison to sit and chat with inmates with a meal or goodies.

David said inmates usually work in the kitchen under supervision by Carnegie-trained officers that would prepare pepperpot for the inmates. For inmates who are vegetarians, they get pepperpot with chunks.

Giving back
Meanwhile, Superintendent of Prisons, Carlton Cameron told the Pepperpot Magazine that this year they will not have their annual Christmas Tree Light-Up. Instead, they are gifting toys to the children of the indigenous villages of Karau and Skull Point.

He stated that from this gesture they will do a billboard and erect it at Mazaruni Prison and this initiative will be done by all officers of the facility.

Despite some challenges, Cameron said that they have housing facilities for prison officers since some are from outlying areas and are therefore away from home and their families for lengthy periods.

He disclosed that over time they have seen an increase of the prison population since most inmates are serving long sentences, some of whom were convicted for serious crimes.

Presently, there is the construction of new prison blocks at Mazaruni Prison with Phase Two already started and the project is expected to be completed in the New Year.

The $4 billion expansion will hold 400 prisoners to help with the overcrowding at the other prisons across the country.

Phase One is about 40 per cent completed. When finished there will be a U-shaped, two-storied building that will house cells, offices and a courtyard for the prisoners.
Phase Two of the project is a square-shaped building that will house offices, training centres and accommodation for the prisoners and a road will also be constructed to link the two prisons.

Also, before the expansion of the prison, 12 living quarters earmarked for prison staffers at the Mazaruni Prisons have been completed.