“Punishment is not prevention. History offers cold comfort to those who think grievance and despair can be subdued by force.“ – Robert F. Kennedy

Mr Editor, your paper published an article on February 17 detailing the issue of contraband in our prisons — namely, mobile phones. I’m not here to refute that story. The facts as you present them speak for themselves.

The issue of contraband — specifically drugs and mobile phones — in a controlled environment should be troubling. Over the past few years, there have been numerous reports of drug-related medical emergencies at Westgate. And, as your reporting shows, mobile phones and related equipment are regularly intercepted and seized. The concern that the public has upon reading your story is warranted. The widespread proliferation of contraband is not something that the public should feel comfortable with. Because they are the ones who have been impacted by the criminality of us who are incarcerated.

For victims and their families to read about prisoners on mobile phones — either as a leisure activity or to conduct criminal activities — can only bring about feelings of anger and concern. And I sympathise with them. Because this is yet another thing that can hinder their healing process.

So, I don’t write today to offer any justification for inmates having cellphones. Personally, I would love to see the contraband out of our prisons. Because then it would remove the excuses from those at the top of the Department of Corrections as to why they don’t do their job to educate and rehabilitate us. And no longer could they use the risk of contraband entering our prisons as reasons not to offer work release or charity projects.

They act as though their duty to rehabilitate is some conditional function of a programme. That if contraband doesn’t exist then they can do their public safety duty. You see, many at the top don’t understand that the public safety mandate of their job isn’t just for our secure detention during our term of incarceration. You know what, forgive me. I made an assumption that they don’t understand. I think the issue is far more sinister in that they simply don’t care about rehabilitation here. And they will use any cover they can to not do that part of their job.

Mr Editor, one of my favourite movies of all time is The Shawshank Redemption. I’ve probably seen it two dozen times if not more. And you know one thing that I’ve never seen in that movie? A cellphone. But I have seen contraband. In prisons all over the world, you will find it. It is a causality of prohibition. When the Eighteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution passed, alcohol didn’t go away. In fact, it spread and was widely credited for the rise in organised crime and corruption.

Instead of creating an environment that encourages personal growth and rewards academic and vocational excellence, our prisons have become a place where inmates are tasked with managing idle time.

Last year, there were reports of animal waste accumulating on the railway trails and public parks because the Government didn’t have a vendor to empty the waste bins. Why aren’t prisoners doing that? Why aren’t prisoners cleaning up our parks and beaches? Clearing brush on the side of the road or near power lines. Couldn’t prisoners assist the Department of Works and Engineering during the summer to get our schools prepared for the coming year?

Most prisoners aren’t looking for money while incarcerated. (Though I believe the current rate of $0.50/day for labour needs to be amended.) We are looking for opportunities to learn and engage in meaningful work. Work that allows us to contribute to our community and possibly develop skills that prepare us for life after prison. Because, barring the most unfortunate of circumstances, every prisoner will leave the system at some point. We are coming back out to be your neighbours. So please let that sink in.

Why doesn’t the department hire officers with skills needed to teach classes? Over the past couple years, inmates with professional skills and work experience have offered to teach classes. Yet the department’s administration have not even engaged to determine the feasibility of such efforts.

Instead, the department continues to try and recruit members of the public to teach on a part-time basis. This has yielded inconsistent results. Whether it be owing to the marginal remuneration or the challenges of teaching in such an environment, this approach hasn’t created a structured learning environment within our prisons. The education of prisoners is critical to public safety after one’s release. Yet the Ministry of Justice’s statement that accompanied The Royal Gazette’s article didn’t mention the words education or rehabilitation once. And so it wasn’t surprising to see their omission on page 31 of the Budget Statement either. That should be troubling to everyone.

There must be a concrete plan put in place for the education and rehabilitation of our prison population. And that plan must be backed by some measure of spending. It is far more costly to house persons over repeated stints in prison. The creation of a fund that allocates $5,000 a year towards vocational training and education for every inmate serving more than five years would prove far more effective in lowering our recidivism rate than the status quo.

And while asking the public for more money to be spent on its least desirable citizens may be a tough ask, the alternative is showing to be far more costly — fiscally and socially.

It’s easy to label prisoners as the “them” in our society. And to push us to the periphery. But who will be the “them” tomorrow, facing society’s push? Today it is prisoners, but in the future, it could the sick or those from different countries or those who worship or love differently. We have grown to treat people like depreciating assets because we can’t look past their exterior to see the humanity and limitless potential that they have inside.

But our society is fracturing and in need of repair from all who call this island home. We have become accustomed to retreating into our silos, hoping that they will protect us from the broader issues at play.

For those of us behind these walls who have contributed to those issues, we have to look in the mirror and be honest about our part in where our island is now. We have to acknowledge the damage we’ve done. And, as a result of this terrible experience, be committed to being agents of change in our society. And hopefully, through those efforts, our community will be willing to embrace us again.

I want to pause for a moment to thank groups such as Prison Fellowship, led by Mr and Mrs Edward Smith, Glenn Fubler, Sharon Swan and Lynne Winfield, of the Empowerment Circle. And most recently, Bermuda Is Love’s Aaron Crichlow and George Barbieri. These groups along with various religious groups have come into our prisons to encourage, listen and advocate. They, through action, have shown us that we are more than just the worst thing we’ve done. And I hope that more groups within the community volunteer their time with us.

Mr Editor, there are men in our prisons with incredible stories to tell, whose past lives mirror the lives of our most at-risk young men. These stories — these men — are resources that need to be tapped into. They are yet another tool that can be used to combat the gang and antisocial elements within our home. At present, there is a proposal from an inmate on the desk of the Minister of Justice to create a podcast initiative to get these stories into the public. And to do it in a way that is sensitive to victims and their families.

By allowing inmates to participate in the rebuilding of our community, you give us a stake in its success or failure. By providing an avenue for inmates to share their stories and the lessons they have learnt, it allows the public to see behind a headline; to see the humanity in all of us. And through filming and editing, it allows prisoners to develop digital storytelling skills that they can parley into income upon their release.

In the coming weeks, there will be a lot of focus around the Government’s Budget. And I will be particularly interested to see the details surrounding the $2.17-million increase in the DOC’s spending. Specifically, how much of that is committed to educating prisoners. I have a suspicion, but I’d welcome being surprised.

While yesterday’s headline was cellphones, in ten years it will be something else if the underlying issues haven’t been fixed. Contraband exists, but it isn’t the problem. It’s a symptom.

• Behind the Walls is a resident of Westgate Correctional Facility