Madam, – If ever we needed proof that Ireland is, and always has been, a dysfunctional authoritarian patriarchy, then today’s article about the resignation of the governor of the women’s prison is surely it (Front page, April 26th). What kind of society imprisons women for failing to make credit union loan repayments while rewarding the men who have brought this country to their knees? – Yours, etc,
Madam, – I was saddened to hear of the resignation of Kathleen McMahon as governor of the Dóchas Centre in Dublin’s Mountjoy Prison and the worrying concerns she has brought to light.
I have been studying in London for the past six months and one of my courses, concerned with prisons, has shown statistical evidence from the UK that should give pause to managers intent on dismantling a system with a strong rehabilitative focus.
The Corsten Report, an extensive study of women’s prisons in the UK, showed the majority of women were serving short-term sentences for minor offences, however nearly two-thirds were re-convicted within two years. The majority were poor, one-fifth were foreign nationals, two-thirds had a drug problem, two-thirds had mental health issues and a third had suffered sexual abuse.
Out of the women who had dependent children when sentenced, only 5 per cent of those children stayed in the family home. While male prisoners with children more often have a partner to hold the home together, the same is not the case for a majority of women. Prison is a deeply destabilising place, but particularly so for women. If the approach and culture of the Dóchas Centre is changed from a rehabilitative to a punitive system, the possibility for many extremely vulnerable women to make a new start and not re-offend will be seriously diminished. It seems there may already have been a great loss in the resignation of Ms McMahon. – Yours, etc,