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Prison reform activist Wayne Kublalsingh is calling on Opposition Leader Kamla Persad-Bissessar to raise the release of 700 inmates in Parliament, based on the recommendation of Prison Commissioner Dennis Pulchan.
Kublalsingh was speaking outside the Leader of the Opposition’s office, Charles Street, Port of Spain, where he delivered a letter asking for a meeting with Persad-Bissessar.
Kublalsingh’s group, the Prison Reform Movement, has been campaigning for four months.
“This is a campaign for criminal justice reform and one of the most egregious and abusive parts of the justice system is the prison system.”
He said two weeks ago he met with Pulchan, who combed through categories of prisoners, some of whom are aged, non-abusive, or peaceful, and compiled a list of 700 inmates he believed could be reintegrated into society.
Kublalsingh said the list was given to the court and to National Security Minister Stuart Young.
But, he said, Young has failed to meet with the group.
“We are sure he has received it, so why is he taking so long to work on the list?
“We are asking the opposition leader to bring this matter to Parliament as a matter of urgency (to) use its parliamentary powers, bequeathed by the law, to force the government to look at the list to see who can be released.”
Kublalsingh said the government had done some work on the subject in years past, citing a report on criminal justice reform put forward in 2013 by the PP government. But he said nothing has been done since.
“The PNM government said they would do it, and they are not.”
Kublalsingh also said he has met with Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) Roger Gaspard, SC, who outlined a number of solutions, including parole, electronic bracelets, and enhancing the number of judges in the judiciary.
“The whole system is backlogged (and) abusive…It’s a huge systemic problem, but at least (releasing the inmates) is a symbolic show by the government that they are interested in doing something.”
Kublalsingh said Attorney General and Minister of Legal Affairs Faris Al-Rawi has agreed to meet with the group.
The letter to Persad-Bissessar said, “Members of the public, inclusive of the families of inmates, the victims of crime, and those who have suffered abuses in the face of criminal justice delay or shortfall, are key stakeholders in the criminal justice process.”
It said conditions at the prisons are primitive and the families of victims face insufferable agony due to delays and other shortcomings in the system.
“We are of the view that criminal justice may not be fixed unless the criminal justice system in its entirety is fixed.”
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