As a former inmate of prison in Antigua, more formerly known as 1735, I would like to know this.
Why are we not addressing the real issues of the prison — no counselor, a half-ass welfare system, no rehabilitation, UWI courses (but for the same four inmates all the time, who ain’t coming out of 1735 any time soon).
Then society looks at you differently just because you went to jail.
What job programs are there for a person who’s released from prison?
When I left, we were still having to use bottles and buckets in the cells.
Everyone makes a mistake, some more than others, that doesn’t mean they should be treated like dogs. Let’s talk about the raiding of cells.
Just imagine you’re in your dead sleep, a loud bang from the cell door being open, officers with guns, bright flashlights in your face, telling to get out the cell, putting on a cold ass handcuff and foot cuff, standing in a cold passage in sometimes just your boxers and vest, you can’t catch your bearings, trouble sleeping now.
Now welfare. Does this even exist? Well not while I was there.
Inmates sleeping on the floor, bed bug infestation (you don’t want to see certain inmates’ skin).
Bowls for eating out of being turned back from inmates’ family members (saying not allowed). But inmates should eat out of a cut bottle.
Let’s not mention about the outside toilet for doing your number 2.
When I was there, there was no visitation in person, only via zoom, which the Internet wasn’t good at all. If there’s visitation, you get like what 15 mins, and the age limit that can visit you, SMH.
To the head of CBH, you would shut down a restaurant for having 10 roaches, but not 1735, which is Joe’s apartment, some big rodents which walk standing up, bedbugs, you name it 1735 ah breed it.
Let’s not even mention the luxury suite that the British dude is living in at the base, while the Black inmates are living in hell!!!!
In closing, instead of putting all the funds behind security, look at the welfare of the inmates, get a counselor, get a job program for released convicted person’s rehabilitation !!!!!! Let’s break the cycle of in and out of 1735
A former inmate
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Very very well said. We don’t jail politicians and their families for stealing in Antigua. They are some of the biggest criminals in the world. They steal from this nation over and over and get away scotch free. They rape and plunder our treasury and get away scotch free. This we they name their side kick dunce baba black had.. and ambassador at large. For what.. raping the treasury on their behalf. Plenty civil servants assist them to rape Antigua. Baba is the contractor that is building his mansion. They spent the country money and went to the slave owner party. They collude with white men and Rob Antigua – Louis bro and big sponsor kool raping Antigua .
They refuse to pay black contractors and suppliers. Run their businesses to bankruptcy. Antiguans catching hell and they and who they choose doing very well.
So who is going to stand up for Antigua and send them to 1735. Then let the rats , bed bugs have a field day.
Make it nice so you na fraid go back ? Most antigua never even feel ah handcuff so tap cry.
Chubblesum, shush! You talking nonsense!
Chubblesum like them never completel school…. Pure fuckery you a chat
hush ya kunt!!
If we are truly going to move in a different direction with regard to incarceration maybe a panel of stakeholders should be established and in depth set of objectives that must be addressed must be articulated. The emphasis should shift to rehabilitation of the inmates and training of the prison officers also. If raids are conducted and contraband increases then that process has to be revisted so as to ascertain why there is no improvement. The prison situation has existed probably for centuries and we as a society should look at it as an opportunity to fix it permanently and at the same time improving humans and our society.
Well I understand that they are making it uncomfortable to keep ppl from getting comfortable with the either of not going to prison, living that life of not paying bills,
But at the same time the prisoners have a point
Wen they are released it’s hard to get a job to better urself, nobody believe u change for the better n society looks down on u…many of u need to put urself in another beings shoe to understand instead of judging them
An interesting read @ A former inmate.
I note with interest though that you haven’t gone into the same FORENSIC details which led you to being incarcerated, or for that matter, the impact your crime had on the victim(s)?
However, I’m in total agreement with you about the BRITISH man that’s been locked away in much more comfortable surroundings than other prisoners on the island – I would throw him inside of 1735 also.
Brixtonian supporting the VICTIMS of crime as always!
How dare you it’s like you forgot England still runs the show. There is a Governor General who represents the British Crown…The caucasian British man CANNOT be placed in the same holding facility as the descendants of his ancestors slaves…
Whilst I understand and agree with most of what the former inmate stated , there is a misunderstanding that when one goes to jail that life continues as normal …
The conditions should be liveable as the inmates are not animals.
Even though some of the crimes committed deservse harsh punishment ,the environment should be in good standing enough for them to live…
I hope the relevant authorities read your letter and respond favorably .
*deserve
If you can’t do the time, doh do the crime
Saw the headline and say chupz, but come back on and say let me have a read. Nun sorry there for what I have to say, it could even be somebody for me in there. Before you get up and do things to go in all this mess, r face this horrible situation u was living a free and fear life, walk free on the streets , have u comfortable bed, honest income coming in, if your a clean person u nice clean bathroom n house turn u keys at anytime, y ask these ?? Y cry? Y complain?? U have to know what your doing before u doing it know wrong from right and we still do it. O ME IGNORANT, ME HEAD HOT, I CAN GO JAIL N SIT DOWN, IT WOULD BE ONLY FOR A TIME N ME OUT. THESE ARE THE THINGS SOME U MEN SAY N OOO ME EAT TAX PAYERS MONEY. ETC I COULD GO ON. WE AS YOU YOUNG AND EVEN AGEABLE PEOPLE, THINK BEFORE WE DO THINGS CAUSE ONCE YOU R CAUGHT U KNOW WHAT THE CONSEQUENCES GONNA BE LIKE. I don’t care who’s gonna wod me and have nuff to say I talk my mind n don’t take nonsense. To the people that there for self defence this is not for you. Sometimes when I read some the breaking news and say this a stupidness n don’t makes sense I just chupz n stop read. Me na have sorry for nobody that know wrong from right and have sense and in their right sound mind.
Ex1735-er
Many former prisoners have been the leaders of prison reform movements. Now you have expressed your frustration, take action.
There are numerous international organizations who interested in the human rights of prisoners including the UN. Get in touch with them. They are listed on the internet.
Sir. You have a right to talk your mind on your experience of prison and it sounds as if you don’t want to go back or wish that for anyone else. Your experience sounds to me that I should not make a mistake to end up there because it’s not clean it’s a horrible treatment and unhealthy can’t see my entire family because of age limit etc.. that’s horrible, in other countries it’s better than this why in Antigua have to be extra with letting people feel bad it’s Antigua thing to love ugly for one another and it’s sad .
You mentioned about an English man in the base living luxury life while the others suffer in 1735 if it was me in your place I would fight for my rights for everyone to be equally treated the same because here isn’t England and Antigua people need to stop acting against each other even families and support each other lack of support with us as a country and family causes all these problems and hate towards our own race.
Prison should be a hell hole, one’s worse nightmare. Not a hotel, not a boarding school and not a rehabilitation center.
With that said, only murderers, rapists, career criminals and the likes should be confined to the penal institution. Petty thieves or someone who stole some food items because they were hungry, or stole something that they desperately needed because they had no money to buy should not be incarcerated but made to make restitution double the cost. If the individual doesn’t have a job then the government put them in the employ of the state at minimum wage and pay half of their earnings to the victim of their crime until the cost is recovered. No one should be sent to jail for possession of marijuana unless its for trade, and even so there should be heavy fines and confiscation that should be enough as a deterent. For most non serious crimes there should be a fine system in place as a punishment and deterent, but not prison. And juveniles who gets on the wrong side of the law should be flogged and put on probation.
And those in government who plunder the country should be jailed for life and all of their assets sold and the funds return to the state period.
I agree!
You know what sport, I cannot intelligently speak to prison life because I’ve never committed crimes that result in prison.
Pro tip: don’t commit such crimes if you don’t want to pay the consequences of a stinking prison cell.
Our best option is to keep out of the penitentiary system in the first place by not transgressing any Laws of The State, as long as those Laws are not opposed to The Law of God Almighty, for as bad as things are on this side for many, with lack of work, money etc., they are far worse on the other side behind closed prison walls.
If however, one has already been through the system, then what’s done is done, but it’s time to make a change, turn a negative into positive by the grace of The Most High.
All of us humans, without exception, were born under an eternal death penalty, for all have sinned and come short of the glory of God; Behold, I was shapen in iniquity; and in sin did my mother conceive me:Psalms 51:5, but thanks be to God, this is not the end of us, we can STILL be saved through Jesus Christ Who Himself lived the life that we should have lived, and died the death that we should have died, and because He was without sin, death and the grave could NOT hold Him, on the third day He rose again.
So now here we are, it is up to each of us, AS INDIVIDUALS, to accept God’s free gift of eternal life, through faith in His Son Jesus. The price is already paid, the battle is already won, for Jesus paid it all, all to Him I owe, sin had left a crimson stain, He washed it white as snow. God bless.
Some of you on here must be some of dumbest, most ignorant people in Antigua with some of the statements. The former inmate is speaking to the cleanliness and sanitation of a facility where those who are free visit and works.
The amount of germs that can be passed around from an unsanitized environment like a prison, not only affects the prisoners, but also the guards and those who conduct business in the prison.
It also affects those family members and friends who visit the prison and help transmit such cantamination of those germs or possible disease.
So a filthy prison does not help anyone, and from what this former prisoner describe, such conditions should be cleaned up to the benefit of all.
Prison reform is a real thing, and any country that tackles it in a serious humane manner, benefits from the positive outcomes.
This broken prison system is just only one of the many broken Government institutions in Antigua.
Everything is broken, and all of it needs to be fixed, just look around and many will agree how busted things are.
But to the authors dismay, if this Government cannot even have the decency to clean up it’s city and all the Garbage all around the island, I don’t think they will put any effort in cleaning up a prison, sadly.
but I understand your gripes fully well.
And for the record, not everyone that is in prison is guilty of the crime, some people were framed, so the idea perpetrated by some of you that only criminals are in prison, suggesting ‘”if you can’t do the time don’t do the crime” is both dumb and ignorant.
*are*
What our government should be looking into, they are not and I’m not just referring to ABLP alone, also to UPP, cause if they were in power, it would be the same thing. They both got a chance and failed and still failing. Yes we need a better jail. Some ppl go jail for hitting a person in a car and loose the case. That driver did not purposely kill that person, but goes to jail, a decent somebody gone jail and have to now live like that, a suicidal life. Then we have the traffic situation, it’s carnival at that and drinking, speeding etc. We need police on tge road more, watching out for these things and robber man too . We need the police to be sent overseas for proper training. Please get proper police that pass 5 subjects or at least finish high school. Where is all the CIP money going? A just 3 main road properly fixed. And ppl go Bex me say this, but them dam vitz cars is overdoing it now, all kinds of young ppl a drive and just born , don’t even understand speed but a overtake ppl like they so got some place to go. Police need to be on the alert for them, killing off innocent ppl. This island is not a real country, only an island that needs a proper structure and directions cause our island leaders can’t work without direct supervision else this is the result, more negative than positive.
Some of the commenters especially men who believe prison should be a hellhole need to remember you can go to jail because the little girl u catch tiefing something in your yard hates you and decides she is going to frame you and a jury believes her over you…You as a decent person have to be shamed and live in the hell of 1735….
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