An ex-convict who served time at Her Majesty’s Prison (HMP) on three separate occasions, told The Guardian Friday that the 150 page Prison Reform Report presented by the Government, contains only a fraction of the “underhand dealings” that occur there.
“They have this section in maximum security called “F” block, where prison authorities use this section as a make or break an individual section. It is also an area where people throw feces at you and eat their own feces and every time an officer (prison) goes through there, they have to carry cigarettes, to give those who they consider to be crazy,” informed Mr. Stephen Seymour.
Mr. Seymour, who spoke candidly from the offices of The Nassau Guardian, said the government did not highlight such occurrences in its prison report and the public needs to know where their families are being kept. He added however, that he is willing to work along with the government and the Ministry of National Security to give them an “ex-convict” perspective of what really goes on at HMP.
“I am not prepared to just sit down and do what we were doing for some 40 something years. Drink some coffee, talk about it and then every thing is honky dory. That is not going to work. The prison is a walking time bomb. I am sounding an alarm and letting them know that if this bomb happens in this country, we will be in trouble,” warned Mr. Seymour, who added that the prison also lacks proper security.
The former ex-convict, who has now secured an honest job for himself, said that he wants to meet with government representatives and intends to give them his full cooperation, in an effort to improve the inhumane conditions at the prison.
“I would like to suggest to the government some of the things that I feel that they can do to more or less upgrade the system and enact some programs that I am sure would be viable toward rehabilitation,” he said, adding that he feels that he can offer much help, as up to this point “nothing has worked.”
“What has worked, has not worked effectively enough to make a mark. It has therefore reached that point where those of us that have passed through the prison system, must have some type of human concern to be able to sensitize the public and the government, pull our heads together, and see what we can contribute toward breaking down this wall of crime,” he said.
Mr. Seymour said he wants to know why the government is taking so long to enact legislation to change the prison. He said the government can compile many reports, but legislation to govern the prison has to put in place.
“We cannot blame in particular government, but the entire Bahamian society for this social genocide to continue to happen,” he said.
Additional vocational and educational activities that would allow inmates to exercise their minds, were some of the suggestions that Mr. Seymour said he would like to see implemented at the prison, so that inmates would not sit around idle. He said there once was a shoe store where inmates made shoes and an art shop, but this has since stopped. He continued that recently, a technical school was built for prisoners, but has yet to open.
“They can find time for inmates to come outside and work around government buildings and help build a new police barracks, but there is this school on the prison compound that can’t open up. It tells us that either government is afraid to deal with prison authorities and their lackadaisical attitude, or it is incapable of dealing with the situation and therefore has to call for foreign help,” said Mr. Seymour.
Mr. Seymour, who also spoke of his experiences while at HMP, said that while there, he occupied his mind with reading books and studying. Since leaving HMP, he said that he has now realized that he did not have to carry out the acts that he did in order to obtain money, which led to him being imprisoned.
The ex -convict, who went on to paint a picture of HMP, mainly its F Block, said: “What we need to do is put some pressure on government to make certain that the Superintendent and the staff of the prison, get rid of the attitude of that block.” He added that such individuals should be taken to the Sandilands Rehabilitation Centre.
Mr. Seymour further informed that the “F” block of the prison transforms the inmates into animals. He explained that prisoners are beaten badly by officers and regularly ask those that are said to be “crazy” to throw feces on those that are considered to be “sensible.”
“I think the public needs to know about these type of things because we are trying to find out why a lot of people keep going back to prison and we do not understand that it’s the treatment of a lot of people while in prison, that make them so bitter, that they can’t really adjust to a mind of reformation and find themselves in the same position again,” he said.
According to Mr. Seymour, HMP does not have any correctional officers, but only those that are there to ensure that prisoners are “locked down.” He noted that there are many times when first time inmates may have had a previous encounter with an officer while out of prison, and because of this, they are targeted.
“They go down there (HMP) and they mash him up. He is placed in the F Block and after three months, he is either stone crazy, or believes he is crazy and the officers also beat him if they feel like,” he said, adding that such issues need to be addressed.
“These are some of the things that result in prisoners not even having a mind to want to reform and it is a domino effect. All through the prison, guys are only trying to make sure that they don’t go to F block, rather than trying to change their lives,” he said.
Mr. Seymour continued that: “Either the government deal with the problems at HMP, or they will find that the prison will have the biggest organization of organized criminals that they could shake a stick at.”
“I am imploring Mother Pratt and her staff to let’s get to the bottom of this and see what we can do together,” said Mr. Seymour.
Meanwhile, the 150 page Prison Reform Report was tabled in the House of Assembly on Wednesday April 23, in addition to a 60-page companion report on security and an Inmate Orientation Manual. The compilations were findings of an 18 member Prison Reform Commission that was appointed last October to undertake a comprehensive and strategic review of Her Majesty’s Prison (HMP).
The Commission was charged ostensibly with the task of submitting findings and recommendations on the policies, programmes, premises and procedures necessary to overtime, transform Her Majesty’s Prison into a correctional facility to which 70 per cent of the released inmates do not return.
Even though the Prison Report pointed out 12 findings, it was the result of condensing some 300 findings and recommendations into 12 key actions steps. The Report also outlined 12 key recommendations for prison reform, of which some included: Addressing the perceived staff shortage and low morale, reducing prison overcrowding by encouraging the courts to reserve prison sentences for dangerous, violent, repeat and sex offenders; enhancing the financial independence of the institution and enhancing the overall security of the institution.
As the Commission was given 12 specific mandates to carry out at HMP, they had to examine in a nutshell, two broad objectives. These included: Understanding and explaining the specific factors associated with low rehabilitation and high recidivism rates among HMP inmates and to plan premises, policies, programs and procedures that would transform the institution philosophically and operationally into a correctional facility with a rehabilitation and reintegration success rate as enviable as its record of detention.
The National Security Minister, while tabling the Report, noted at the time that it was not the intention of the government to have the Report sit on the shelf gathering dust and mentioned that a Prison Review Committee will be named from among the members of the Prison Reform Commission.
“To those who regard these studies as futile exercises, I would simply say this in closing: Prison reform means crime prevention, prison reform means societal protection, not just crime, but from disease and family disruptions, prison reform means a safer society for all of us,” said Minister Pratt, who added that it was also recommended that a remand centre to be built in Grand Bahama.
By Tamara McKenzie, The Nassau Guardian
