Solitary Confinement !

Back in the harsh old days after 1788 the punishment of prisoners was draconian by the standards of today.   Even a misdemeanour often  resulted in the offender being strapped to a metal triangle and awarded fifty lashes with the dreaded "cat of nine tails ".  Food was scarce in this new colony and holding back rations was another way of meting out punishment,

Human nature being as it was there were some prisoners who were beyond redemption and their warders found a new use for a rocky outcrop conveniently situated in Sydney harbour.  It was known to the navy as Fort Denison, but to the miserable folk forced to spend time there it was known as "Pinchgut "!

Incorrigible repeat offenders were chained on this rock and left for weeks with little shelter.  Even worse, the delivery of food was irregular and apart from the vagaries of the weather they suffered hunger and thirst, hence the name they bestowed on this place of torture.

A recent episode of the investigative programme "Four Corners "threw the spotlight on prison conditions for juveniles in the Northern Territory and that has morphed into an enquiry that is encompassing the conditions prevailing in state juvenile institutions.   Some people even draw a comparison with the punishments that prevailed two centuries ago.

In particular, the conditions of Kariong  Juvenile Correctional centre in Sydney is raising alarm.  It seems that many offenders spent twenty-three hours of each day in what can be termed solitary confinement - locked in their cell and allowed just one hour of what is termed "recreational activity ". In most cases, during that one hour their hands remain shackled in handcuffs.

There is a twenty-four hour limit on using solitary confinement as a punishment, but the fine print allows this to be extended when it is deemed necessary as part of a "Detainee Risk Management Plan "( DRMP )"- where it can persist for ten days.   During that time, the detainee will have no contact with other offenders, not attend education facilities - and be deprived of cutlery with which to eat meals.

The National Children's Commissioner has given evidence that depriving juveniles of peer contact and having them serve in solitary confinement is harmful to brain development.  Statistics supplied to the enquiry reveal that seventy percent of those held at Kariong - are Indigenous.   In particular, the tribal loyalties that are a part of Indigenous culture are very important in maintaining Indigenous well being.

This enquiry faces an impossible situation.  Any reasonable person can see the harm of a young person deprived of conversation and companionship for twenty-three hours a day.  That one hour of recreation would have little meaning with hands shackled by handcuffs and the fact that meals would need to be eaten without implements would be completely degrading.   The overall effect would be to diminish the veneer of belonging to the human race.

It is easy to forget that some of the young people held in Kariong are there because they have committed serious crime - and in some cases that is willful murder.  Many are big and physically powerful and they have absolutely no respect for their jailers. Some are predators who are likely to prey on weaker prisoners and in some cases they are withdrawing from drugs like Ice which inhibit all forms of rationality.   Some are suffering diseases which they try and inflict on the staff serving the institution and many are part of a gang culture.

It would be very easy for warders to opt for personal safety and use the DRMP provisions to isolate a very troublesome and dangerous detainee by using solitary confinement ass a form of intimidation. The job of this enquiry is to seek balance.  Not all detainees are subject to draconian restrictions.  The problem is that if unworkable restrictions are put in place these institutions quickly become perilous for other inmates and those who guard them.

Sadly, the decisions that will be drawn from this enquiry will be made by politicians and once again party politics will muddy up the water,.    We have a problem that far too many Indigenous Australians are in our prison systems - and so far we have not found an answer.   We obviously need to have a long and careful look at the rules that apply to make sure that the treatment in place to deal with disorder is not being abused, but it is equally important that the staff maintain control.

Unfortunately, the opposing views are so wide apart that whatever decisions are made will not suit all the factions involved !