A pen pal initiative with Westgate inmates has been proposed, following an outreach to the facility by the groups Imagine Bermuda and Chewstick.

Imagine Bermuda head Glenn Fubler said the concept sprang from a February 11 airing for inmates of a documentary on South Africa’s late former president Nelson Mandela.

A team from the two groups showed the film ‘Nelson Mandela: The Fight for Freedom’, on the anniversary of Mr Mandela’s release from jail after 27 years’ imprisonment.

“Following the screening, we spent time in group discussion with the men, relating Madiba’s story to their own lives,” Mr Fubler said, using the popular term of respect for Mr Mandela, who died in December.

“The film revealed how his long imprisonment on Robben Island facilitated his personal transformation. It also uncovered the power of reconciliation in the restoration of a country that had been on the brink.”

Inmates “appreciated the connections that were being made”, he said — and the group resolved to visit Westgate on a monthly basis, to be “inspirational and educational”.

“One idea, coming out of our first session, is to initiate a pen pal system,” Mr Fubler said.

“We are looking for members of the public who would like to take on a pen pal from Westgate. Those interested would commit to a regular (weekly or monthly) conversation — by e-mail — with an individual inmate.”

Communications would be monitored by Corrections.

Mr Fubler said that while the group Prison Fellowship employs a faith-based approach, the pen pal initiative would “simply offer a compassionate contact from the wider community, for an inmate”.

To learn more, e-mail info@chewstick.org.