…says Director of Prisons

A PARENT, with up to three children or less, who is incarcerated, usually leaves behind financial hardship for members of that household along with a breakdown in discipline which continues a vicious cycle of poverty and crime.  This was revealed by Director of Prisons, Gladwin Samuels, during his presentation at a virtual launch Friday of the Regional Comparative IDB report, which focuses on imprisonment in the Caribbean for the period 2016 to 2019.
Under the “Survey of Individuals Deprived of Liberty, Caribbean,” data was collected from over 3,500 inmates from six Caribbean countries – The Bahamas (2016), Barbados (2018), Guyana (2017), Jamaica (2018), Suriname (2018) and Trinidad and Tobago (2018). “A review of the persons imprisoned with one to three children shows that in all six countries, between 50-55 per cent of the respondents falls within that category, that is, they have one to three children per household,” Samuels noted.

The Prison Service Director explained that those factors result in school dropouts and low education levels, which then contribute to the vicious cycle.
As such, he emphasised the need for alternatives to imprisonment. In the Caribbean, Samuels noted that the rate of imprisonment across all the countries that were reviewed was quite disturbing. “While we may want to take into consideration the recidivism rate, it points to the fact that some other critical institutions of society, for example family, schools and religious organisations are not being as effective as they should be,” he noted while adding: “Our failure to act and act now could result to further increase in the recidivism rate. While working on improving the standards of our people, the current rate of imprisonment points to the need for aggressive consideration of alternative forms of imprisonment.” He noted the research shows that in four of the six countries investigated, an average of 50 per cent of the respondents indicated that they had previously been imprisoned. Guyana and Jamaica were the only two countries where the recidivism rate is below 35 per cent.
“It points to the fact that much more must be done to address the issue of rehabilitation. When we further evaluate the time that elapsed between previous and current detention, it shows that almost immediately following their release, persons returned to their life of crime,” the Prison Director emphasised.

Adding that this could be an indication that interventions were not very effective or that no intervention was done, Samuels said, adding that it therefore points to the fact that reform efforts need to be more aggressive and meaningful so that the programmes offered could be more effective.
Samuels said that social intervention and support, combined with punishment and encouragement, are much more effective in preventing crimes, and if an inmate is not exposed to opportunities that contribute to positive changes, leaving prison and returning to a life of crime would likely be the first option.
As such, he noted that since the research was done, Guyana’s recidivism rates reduced from 35 per cent to 28 per cent.

“Reform is very much needed and more aggressive and meaningful programmes need to be offered so as to prepare inmates with the required skillset or educational training so that they can be more effective upon their release back into society,” Samuels noted.
Guyana’s prison population is close to 1,800 and the holding capacity has significantly decreased over the years in the aftermath of a fire at the Camp Street Prison in 2017 and at Lusignan Prison in 2020. The survey found that the prisons’ occupancy rate is at 129 per cent and 36 per cent are persons on remand.
The report on the survey noted that the prison population can be reduced by lessening the time spent in pre-trial detention and using imprisonment for only serious offences, noting that drug offences account for a notable proportion of offenders.