Earthquake Provides Opportunity for Prisoner and Offender Reparation

"With a bit of lateral thinking, offenders and prisoners could become major contributors to the reclamation of Canterbury. Instead of being a burden on the state, they could become an asset. At the same time, the government could reduce the ongoing cost of Corrections to the taxpayer, now exceeding $1 billion a year." That is the view of Kim Workman, Director, Rethinking Crime and Punishment.

"New Zealand is imprisoning far too many people for short periods of time. In 208-2009, 91.7% of those released had served 24 months or less, with 71% serving 6 months or less. It is virtually impossible to do anything productive with offenders on short sentences, and many of them end up losing their jobs, their homes and their families during their short time inside. While they are inside, they are often without meaningful work, are not held accountable for their behaviour, and their criminal attitudes are reinforced by listening to each others war stories. It is little wonder that 61.9% of all released prisoners, and 68% of Maori prisoners, reoffend within two years of release.

"The current sentencing regime needs to be urgently reviewed. Plans by Corrections to use people currently on community sentences on reclamation work do not go far enough. Those people sent to prison for 3 - 6 months are usually low-risk offenders, who could benefit from being sentenced to supervised work on earthquake reclamation. Locals could live at home, and report for work daily. Work camps could be built to house offenders from outside the region, with a requirement that non-compliance would result in transfer to a prison. This work could be supervised under a public-private partnership with community organisations such as the Salvation Army, iwi authorities, and service organisations. The benefits of such an arrangement are three fold. Firstly, it would cost the taxpayer a lot less than the $94,000 per prisoner per year. Secondly, it would benefit the wider community. Finally, there is an element of reparation and redemption for the prisoner, knowing that his or her efforts are making a contribution to civil society.

The success of such a programme would depend on two conditions. Firstly, the Department of Corrections would need to review its risk criteria, which is currently set at a ridiculously high level. Twenty years ago, there were around forty prisoners at Wi Tako Prison (now Rimutaka) who left the prison daily to work in Hutt Valley factories and businesses, almost without incident. Today, there is a mere handful on work release, yet they are no more dangerous now than they were then. Secondly, the public and the media need to agree to support and acknowledge the labour of these offenders, and legitimise their efforts. Any attempts to publicly shame, ridicule or "out" prisoners will destroy the trust necessary for it to succeed. The key to successful prisoner reintegration of this kind is clear social support by the communities to which they will return.

There are ample precedents for this approach. Prisoners were used recently during the Toowoomba floods, and in California, prisoners are regularly employed to put out wildfires. The Missouri National Guard trains prisoners in recovery and demolition work, and they form an adjunct to their organisation. In New York State, prisoners for years have been trained in call centre work, and do that work during emergencies.

The Canterbury Earthquake provides an opportunity to turn a liability into an asset, and to turn offenders into contributing and pro-social citizens.

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