Image by Getty Images via @daylife
MANA justice spokesperson Annette Sykes believes New Zealanders want a real debate over our appalling imprisonment rates now the crime statistics have reportedly dropped to their lowest in 25 years.
"Even when the stats show crime is low, National and Labour are still squabbling over who has thrown more New Zealanders into prison longer rather than as what is occurring in other jurisdictions like the United Kingdom questioning the efficacy of privatisation of prisons and the burden to the State and communities this burgeoning industry is costing us all.
“ We know that while that debate is focused on in the media it is Maori who are impacted upon the most due to the systemic discriminatory practices right from the moment of questioning, through charging and representation to sentencing that they confront daily.”
“In light of the incredibly low crime rate, MANA says we need to review the obnoxious private prison cancer this Government has released.
Ms Sykes says with National, Labour and the Maori party all having followed policies that have ruined the economy they clearly would like to run an election based on law and order issues but here as much as anywhere they are on shaky ground.
Ms Sykes says while the rest of the world has been moving away from imprisonment this government has been locking up more and more people having to resort to inhumane double bunking, putting human beings in containers, and building more prisons, all at huge cost.
“The fact they want to do it in a way that their private sector mates can benefit by running and owning the prisons rubs salt into the wound especially when those mates are foreign companies benefitting from the misery of New Zealanders many of whom are tangata whenua.”
Ms Sykes says privatisation of misery of this kind must cease.
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