Island's prison system.

And a prison officer has also decided that "enough is enough'' and has criticised the rehabilitation offered to inmates.

The officer -- who asked to remain nameless to protect his job -- wrote in a letter to The Royal Gazette : "Because the Prison Department is not held accountable, people re-enter society with little hope to do better and end up back in jail.'' Both tell the story of prison life from opposite sides of the bars and their tales shed light on the growing recidivism rate.

Dwight Hatherly talked to The Royal Gazette recently about his experiences behind bars and his concerns over the prison administration's attempts to "fool society''.

"The Minister will say all this is not true but I lived it for five years,'' he said. And he stressed that while in prison he spoke to the administration about the problems inmates faced, but his letters were never acted on and other inmates who forwarded similar complaints to prison and Government officials were also ignored.

Mr. Hatherly said: "I agree that prison is there to punish and not to pamper but if the administration expects to make a better individual, then they must be more flexible and help inmates fulfil their needs.'' Mr. Hatherly was convicted of importing 61.57 pounds of cannabis and possessing the drug with intent to supply on June 5, 1991.

He was sentenced to seven and a half years imprisonment.

He served five years and 24 days -- three years at Casemates, five months at Westgate and the rest of his time at the Prison Farm -- and was freed on June 28 of this year.

Beyond the stories of "appalling conditions, no hygiene and inhumane living conditions'' and bugs and maggots in out-of-date food that inmates were sometimes served ("perhaps this was not intentional but it was consistent''), Mr. Hatherly said the most disconcerting problem for him was there was no definite system.

He said when he entered prison he was never given an orientation about rules and regulations or told what to do and expect while there.

This set the tone for his and other inmates' stays behind bars, he said.

"If an inmate does not take the initiative to find out what he can do to help himself -- that's it. They'll just get their three meals a day and rec time.

They're not told what is available or what is allowed.

"If they have no self-motivation or esteem they'll get nothing done.'' He said he felt the prison system should be taking responsibility for creating a better individual once incarcerated.

This would make their transition back into society smoother and would help them be more productive.

Inmates `cleaned officers' homes' And the prison officer agreed, saying incentives needed to be provided for the inmates to encourage them to do better by "balancing benefit along with responsibility''.

He added the public must get a better return on the $45,000 they were paying to house each individual inmate -- not just a person who leaves jail and goes on welfare before eventually returning to a life of crime.

But in prison, continued Mr. Hatherly, inmates were not made to do anything or get treatment for any problems.

This led to the same people going in and out of prison for the same problems over and over again, he said.

"Too much is left to the inmate's discretion,'' he said. "I don't believe in beating someone to make them do something but incentives must be offered to motivate the individual and then they will be more likely to help themselves.'' However he saw inmates stripped of many incentives during the time he was incarcerated, said Mr. Hatherly.

Prisoners used to be allowed to receive "goody bags'' from family members once a month but that was stopped.

And inmates originally had to work their way up through a grade system with higher grades entitling them to more privileges.

These included increased visits from family per month and the opportunity to take more classes but that was also cut out, said Mr. Hatherly, and all inmates were given the same number of visits.

All this happened while society was told prison officials were trying to foster a better relationship between inmates and their loved ones, continued Mr. Hatherly.

The prison officer wrote that while the administration likes to report to the public that all is well -- "it is mere lip service''.

Inmates are told from the beginning of their incarceration: "You are a drain on the economy and all other resources because of your own lack of discipline.

I have no time for you.'' Mr. Hatherly explained that removing privileges made it too difficult to stay in contact with people outside the walls.

Even phone calls to and from loved ones were barred for some inmates unless they happened to be "tight'' with guards.

Mr. Hatherly elaborated on the favouritism shown from prison officers toward inmates.

During the time he spent behind bars, Mr. Hatherly said he watched how the system treated individuals and saw how unfair it was to some in comparison to others.

Inmates who did things for officers like cleaning their cars -- or even homes in some cases -- got extra privileges for doing so.

"You put an officer in a position where they feel obliged to do you a favour -- you can't blame the inmates who do it, it's part of survival.'' But inmates who kept to themselves could be kept "locked down'' continuously while others enjoyed extra "rec time''.

Prison Commissioner Edward Dyer said he "would certainly like to know more about this''.

He recommended that people with information about Mr. Hatherly's comments get in contact with him.

And on the opposite end of the spectrum were officers who took out "personal vendettas'' against inmates and "were hell bent on making their stay in prison as difficult as possible'', continued Mr. Hatherly.

"No violent force was used but they did not need to do that.'' On the contrary, he said, more emphasis was put on harassing and torturing inmates through mental abuse -- not assisting and correcting them.

Other officers who wanted to help improve the situation were told to mind their own business and worry about their own jobs, not the inmates' well-being.

"So sincere individuals who want to help are denied the ability to do so and get shot down and discouraged.'' Contrary to beliefs that the same walls keeping prisoners in keep things -- such as drugs and alcohol -- out, Mr. Hatherly said: "There is a way to get anything you want in -- either in prison vehicles, through officers or visitors and even through inmates.

"These should be addressed and corrected.'' The availability of drugs and alcohol made counselling programmes set up to deal with abuse problems "useless''.

Once inmates got into a class, they eventually dropped out through frustration and sincere officials trying to help also got frustrated about administration failures and either gave up or quit under the pressure, he said.

In the end, inmates needed to be treated as individuals, he said.

For instance, inmates regularly requesting treatment for substance abuse or problems they had dealing with society were often denied or told the programmes weren't available.

They would be told classes were full yet only a handful of people would be attending, Mr. Hatherly explained.

This all happened while the prison administration published information about inmates being offered the chance to reform and rehabilitate themselves, said Mr. Hatherly.

"This only builds resentment. Some inmates desire to do better but get shot down and are not allowed to pursue goals, so they say `the hell with it'.'' "Our needs are put aside as if they are not of any value at all.'' Mr. Dyer said that inmates were put on a 12 week treatment programme to help them recover from substance abuse.

He added that it was possible that spaces on the course were limited so inmates could have to wait before they could get in the course.

And he said all inmates were provided with the opportunity to take educational courses and some who took advantage of that ended up dropping out.

"Whether or not that is interpreted in another way -- I don't know,'' he said.

But Mr. Dyer stressed that the prison offered as many courses as it could muster with its available resources and admitted that some inmates' wishes might not be met.

However the prisons did try to assist in serving an inmate's basic educational needs and he did not know of anyone being turned down outright.

Mr. Hatherly said: "Westgate is an excellent facility -- perhaps Government overspent on it -- but it is not being utilised. More could be done with what they've got.

"Big classrooms are empty because some inmates are not motivated while others just aren't interested.'' Mr. Hatherly suggested hiring staff to teach inmates and make more classes accessible to them through the days and not just at nights.

"This could motivate inmates so they would not sit around their cell all day long like they are doing.'' The prison officer stressed in closing his letter that the Prison Department could not do everything that needed to be done. That would require co-operation among inmates, authorities and the general public.