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Prisoners 'have it too good'
01/02/2007 16:18 - (SA)
Marelize Barnard, Die Burger
Paarl - "Let them clean up cemeteries and plant veggie gardens." The days of watching soapies like 7de Laan, Generations and Muvhango are at an end for convicts if the chairperson of the portfolio committee on correctional services, Dennis Bloem of the African National Congress, has his way.
"They just lie and eat, and eat and lie. No, no, no, we must change this!"
He was clearly unhappy during a visit on Wednesday to Drakenstein Prison near Paarl to investigate the privileges of convicts.
Prisoners should not be able to join in conversations on the world cup, or about soapies, he said.
'It's business as usual'
In the real world, people had to pay for TV licences; inside, convicts got it for free.
"They're more knowledgeable than you are. For them, it's business as usual. They phone their syndicates from here. It must stop."
The committee is investigating the privileges of convicts because of perceptions that they are better than the rights of law-aiding citizens.
Correctional services officers also complained that convicts had it better than they did.
"Let them (convicts) clean up cemeteries and plant vegetable gardens at schools. They must show that they regret what they did, by working."
'We'll make it uncomfortable'
Bloem emphasised that this did not mean dangerous prisoners should move about in the community, only the less-dangerous categories.
"The president is talking about crime. We must ask ourselves what we are doing about curbing crime.
"We can help the government to fight crime by making it uncomfortable inside prisons," said Bloem.
- Die Burger
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