Dear Editor,
We hear repeatedly that it's high time we get rid of the dinosaurs in Parliament. But if the vacuous responses of the youth wings of both the People's National Party and Jamaica Labour Party to the agreement between Jamaica and Britain to build a new, modern prison is any guide, we may need to keep the dinosaurs around a bit longer.
Firstly, it is nonsense for these youngsters to keep repeating the old story about countries keeping non-national criminals because they grew up in that country and 'learned their crime there'. No country is obliged to keep non-national criminals. Britain will deport them to Jamaica at the end of their sentences and they will be dumped on Jamaican society with the potential to exacerbate an already intractable crime problem. Far better to let them serve the rest of their sentence in Jamaica, where rehabilitation and reintegration into Jamaican society, with enhanced parole/probation services as part of the agreement, is more probable.
Secondly, in any event, Jamaica needs a new maximum security prison to replace the two ancient, dilapidated, overcrowded edifices which are glorified crime factories.
The only criticism of this win-win deal is that it took some 10 years to see the light of day. Big shout-out to the dinosaurs who finally delivered!
Errol W A Townshend
Ontario, Canada
ewat@rogers.com
Shout-out to the dinosaurs!
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We hear repeatedly that it's high time we get rid of the dinosaurs in Parliament. But if the vacuous responses of the youth wings of both the People's National Party and Jamaica Labour Party to the agreement between Jamaica and Britain to build a new, modern prison is any guide, we may need to keep the dinosaurs around a bit longer.
Firstly, it is nonsense for these youngsters to keep repeating the old story about countries keeping non-national criminals because they grew up in that country and 'learned their crime there'. No country is obliged to keep non-national criminals. Britain will deport them to Jamaica at the end of their sentences and they will be dumped on Jamaican society with the potential to exacerbate an already intractable crime problem. Far better to let them serve the rest of their sentence in Jamaica, where rehabilitation and reintegration into Jamaican society, with enhanced parole/probation services as part of the agreement, is more probable.
Secondly, in any event, Jamaica needs a new maximum security prison to replace the two ancient, dilapidated, overcrowded edifices which are glorified crime factories.
The only criticism of this win-win deal is that it took some 10 years to see the light of day. Big shout-out to the dinosaurs who finally delivered!
Errol W A Townshend
Ontario, Canada
ewat@rogers.com
Shout-out to the dinosaurs!
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