Friday, 5 November 2004, 9:17 am Press Release: Green Party
Fewer prisoners, not more prisons
Green Party MP Nandor
Tanczos today scoffed at Government plans to increase prison
capacity, saying that they are looking at the issue of
overcrowding from the ‘wrong end of the
telescope’.
Cabinet has today approved funding to add 213
beds to the country's prison capacity over the next two
years. This is in addition to the four new prisons opening
over the next three years that will increase capacity by
more than 1500 beds.
“Rather than looking at how to lock
up more people, the Government should be focussing on how to
reduce the prison population,” said Nandor, the Green Party
Justice Spokesperson.
“Around half of the prison
population is in for non-violent offences. That’s the real
scandal. The best way to deal with the prison overcrowding
is early release of non-violent offenders and greater use of
community sentencing.
“The overcrowding crisis is a result
of a Government policy that is designed to pander to the
‘tough-on-crime’ lobby. It is an inevitable result of
changes to bail and sentencing law and the poor funding
available for rehabilitative programs.
“Just this week we
saw a severely disabled man sent to prison for five months
and refused leave to apply for home detention, just for
growing cannabis for pain relief. What are the priorities?
“Government Ministers have to look at who is in our
prisons and whether they should be there in the first
place?” said Nandor.
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