Dominican Republic: Losing freedom but not dignity
Jul 17, 2009
from Elizabeth Eames Roebling's article at IPS.org:
There are 236 women here [new model women's prison in Najayo, Dominican Republic], part of a plan to convert the entire penal system in the Dominican Republic to correctional centres of restorative justice.
That concept is broadly defined as institutionalising peaceful approaches to harm, problem-solving and violations of legal and human rights. These range from international tribunals like the South Africa Truth and Reconciliation Commission to innovations within the criminal and juvenile justice systems, schools, social services and communities.
Officials travelled to various model prisons around the world – in England, the United States, Holland, France, China and Colombia – to choose elements they wanted to incorporate.
Ian Worthington, the ambassador from Britain, which provided technical assistance to the project, is enthusiastic about its success.
"Of the 36 prisons in the island, 11 have been converted already. The women's prison has a re-offence rate of less than five percent, which is unheard of," he said. "Although the prison has only been open for less than three years, the initial signs are hugely encouraging."
"When you visit there you see that there are the number of people in the cell that the cell was built for - you don't get the overcrowding," he added. "Their liberty is withheld, but their dignity is respected. This has helped people accept the training for skills that the women can use after they go out from the prison."
