Monday, August 24 2009

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WINNERS: Participants of the Prison Services Essay and Poetry Competition, which includes inmates and prison officers, stand with their trophies at th...

Overcrowding at prisons in TT has already started to decrease, Commissioner of Prisons John Rougier said Friday.

He was speaking with reporters after the prize-giving ceremony for the Prison Officer’s Essay and Inmates Poetry competition at the Golden Grove Prison, Arouca.

Rougier said they were dealing with overcrowding and cramped cells and already a number of inmates have been removed from the various prisons to the Maximum Security Prison (MSP).

He said the MSP was under-utilised for a number of years because of the lack of staff and since that problem has been addressed they were able to relocate some prisoners to the facility.

Rougier said inmates have been removed from Port-of- Spain and Carrera prisons.

Rougier said MSP now holds in excess of 1, 000 inmates with three inmates to a cell. He said there were also comfortable dormitories.

He said about a year ago Port-of-Spain prison had some 800 to 1,000 inmates but currently holds just above 500 inmates.

“That tells you how we are dealing with the overcrowding in the past.”

He added that the facility at Carrera once held 500-600 inmates but was now down to 300.

“We have gotten the staff to deal with it and all the hiccups. The overcrowding is being addressed.”

Rougier said they were looking forward to construction of a new facility in Tobago.

“We are looking forward to building a new prison in Tobago.”

He said land was also allocated in south Trinidad for a facility there.

The Essay and Poetry competition was open to all inmates including, inmates at the Youth Training Centre (YTC), in an attempt to build awareness of the notion of restorative justice.

It was also used to test the level of understanding of the restorative concepts among the inmate population.

The poetry competition was judged in two categories — the 15 to 20 age group and 21 years and over with a theme “Gospel of Restoration”

The winners received units from the Unit Trust Corporation and trophies.

The first-time initiative was hosted by the Penal Transformation Reform and Transformation Unit.

First place winner of the Inmates’ Poetry competition went to Shadale Duncan from the Remand Yard.

He said it was his experience at the prison that led him to enter the competition.