2/09/2008  Bullying continues to be a major topic for discussion in the media in South Australia.   An article by Maria Moscaritola in the Advertiser 29/08/2008 highlights further stories about the major long-term impact of bullying on the lives of students.   At the Centre for Restorative Justice (A Division of OARS SA ) a different approach to bullying is recommended.   The use of restorative approaches to justice in schools, communities and work places is a new way to heal the harms victims experience because of bullying, to help bullies change their behaviour,  and create more peaceful communities.  The early identification of bullying behaviour and protection for victims is absolutely vital.   It is important that children can be provided with strategies to reduce their exposure to bullies; to reduce the impact to bullying on their lives; and most importantly, to assure their ongoing attachment to the school and peer groups.

Too often however, because schools manage bullying poorly, the victims leave the school because the school has not taken action with the bully.  The regular response if the school does take action with the bully, is for the bully to be removed from class, excluded from the school for a period of time, or expelled.  This does not heal the damaged victim, nor does it stop the bullying. It just relocates the bullying in time and space.  Victims of bullying, and the school community around them, including teachers and parents, need justice.  Justice is not achieved without genuine accountability and fairness between the parties.  Justice is not served well by a one dimensional avoidance response for victims, nor the permanent social exclusion of the bully.  Restorative practices offer a multi-dimensional solution to justice in these circumstances, by providing a real opportunity for all parties affected by the bullying to move forward.  Most importantly victims and bullies can reconcile where possible, reparation can be made, and communities can continue to grow with everyone in a better space. Safety is improved and communities learn that punishment is not the only way to solve conflict.

22/08/2008   A recent survey undertaken by Professor Ken Rigby from UNISA is reported in the Advertiser 21/08/2008 as showing that 70% of teachers say bullies should be punished for relatively minor harassment.   Professor Rigby is reported as saying that "Teachers on the whole are confused about what they think they ought to do".   The real issue here in our view is not whether we should "punish" or not "punish", nor at what moment in time the punishment should occur.   It is actually the exclusive use of punishment itself that should be questioned.   Punishment alone is unlikely to fix the bullying problem, and in fact often makes it worse.   When the punishment includes suspension or expulsion, it is very likely to make the bully worse.

20/08/2008   The issues associated with South Australia's high level of remand prisoners have again surfaced.   Lean Byner on Radio 5AA asked the  question "Why should we care about how remand prisoners are treated?"   Dr Craig Raeside spoke about this, and the OARS SA perspective was also put to Leon by CEO Leigh Garrett.  It seems to us that the critical issue about whether South Australians should care about the way we treat remandees, and all prisoners for that point, is that almost all are released back in to the community.   The better the conditions, and the better the treatment they receive, the better citizens they will become after released. CEO Leigh Garrett also questioned the custom and practice associated assessing all remandees as High Security prisoners.   Leigh made it clear that the Department for Correctional Services would only be placing remandees in G Division if their bahaviour warranted it or out of desperation for space.   As a matter of interest, OARS SA has approached the Justice Department to fund a structured bail accommodation service, but this has been refused.

7/08/2008 Chris Kenny in the Advertiser 6/8/2008 (Minor crims deserve a prison break) further questions the relevance and effectiveness of our overuse of incarceration in this State.   He could probably write an article every week questioning criminal justice systems that are manipulated by ignorant politicians across the world, who conceal the truth from the public, who create more victims of crime, and who destroy lives and the futures of offenders and their families.  Here is a few searching questions the people of South Australia might ask both the Government and Opposition in SA in relation to their justice policies.   Is South Australia the only State in Australia that still retains the right of politicians (through Executive Council) to make the final decisions about permitting parole?   Is South Australia the only State that retains its Crime Statistics Bureau within the domain of the Attorney General's Department?  Is the average length of prison sentence extremely low in South Australia because we churn through hundreds of prisoners on very short sentences?  Are hundreds of people locked away in prison because they cannot find accommodation to gain legitimate Parole, legitimate Home Detention, or who cannot be bailed because of homelessness?  Does the incarceration of parents devastate the futures of their children, who are the innocent secondary victims of crime?   Do the children of offenders, who receive virtually no targeted support, go on to repeat the criminal lives of their parents?  The responses of both major political parties in South Australia to these questions would make interesting reading.

 6/08/2008  The new prisons being designed for Mobilong are apparently the most technologically advanced in Australia.  So reports the Sunday Mail on Sunday 3rd August.   This article is deeply unbalanced because it almost completely ignores the important requirement for offender treatment and rehabilitation.  Some of the systems described in the article will enhance the lives of prisoners and visitors, provide less intrusive ways of searching visitors (thus maintaining dignity and reducing false positives) and possibly keep the community safer.   They may ensure more humane care and they will improve the efficiency of the prisons.  A really important question does remain unanswered however.   When was the last escape attempt, or successful escape from behind the walls of a maximum or medium security prison, in South Australia?   Escape attempts world-wide are now focussed during transport between prisons or between courts and prisons.    We would do well to remember that the most critical factor in the success of any prison anywhere is the quality of the relationships developed between prison staff and those in their care.   In fact prison security depends significantly on these relationships as well.   The focus in this article on the so-called Supermax concept is unnecessary.   Supermax prisons capture public attention and make great headlines but are fraught with danger.   Australia's first so-called Supermax wing in Long Bay Gaol called Katingal, devastated the humanity of all who were sent within its walls.   Prisoners never saw another human being whilst within its walls unless it was because of illness or misbehaviour.   Prisoners were dehumanised to the point of seeking a way out.   I was told by staff of Long Bay gaol that Katingal had the highest suicide rate of any prison in the world just prior to it being closed decades ago.   I am sure the Department for Correctional Services needs a high security wing for prisoners who are violent or mentally ill, but I am also sure that that they are not calling this a Supermax facility with all of the subsequent negatives that attach to it.

30/07/2008  OARS SA now has available a DVD of the presentation given by the DPP, Stephen Pallaras QC, at our recent public forum.   The DVD costs $25.00 including postage and handling.   Please email us at oars@oars.org.au for further details. 

30/07/2008   Chris Kenny presents a really good article in the Advertiser on the 30th July in his TALK column. Chris says  "Our prison system fails everyone".    He is absolutely correct at one level, but the broader issue is that the entire criminal justice system fails everyone.   Our prison system simply cannot keep up with the huge increases in offending numbers in spite of its best efforts.   Other jurisdictions across the world have already worked out that increasing incarceration fails.   The UK Labor Government went down the get tough pathway, and over the last 2 years both privately and publicly have been begging the judiciary to sentence at the lower end of the range because of the massive overcrowding in their prisons.  The judiciary have said no.  The judges say to the politicians  "You changed the laws and we will sentence according to them".   A number of States in the USA have started to reduce sentences because they were facing insolvency, primarily because of the massive costs associated with imprisoning everyone.  If incarceration actually worked, that is if it actually solved the problems of crime, the cost might be worth it.   Our view is that for the vast majority of prisoners, it actually makes things worse.  The issue of the costs of incarceration was dealt with in OARS SA recent newsletter.  Download the Cost of Justice article here.   The full text of the information OARS SA provided for Chris Kenny is here.  OARS SA Statement.  We must address the causes of crime through early intervention.  Restorative Justice also presents a very positive range of alternatives if early intervention fails.   One wonders if the so-called Gang of 49 offenders might benefit from some restorative interventions to help them understand the impact and harm associated with their crimes on victims.   Restorative interventions in the UK have shown that repeat offending can be reduced and victims assisted, when opportunities are provided for victims and offenders to meet face to face.   The current strategy with young aboriginal offenders seems like a significant failure.

28/07/2008   As part of the Commonwealth Government general review of taxation, charity benefits are expected to be scrutinised. OARS SA welcomes the review of taxation benefits that are currently afforded charities and church groups.    The sector is largely unregulated and often dysfunctional, is dominated by large Church-based charities, and needs a close examination.    Many charities have turned into pseudo-corporations, where financial growth and the level of funds received seems to be the primary goal.   Ensuring organisational accountability and sustainability is one thing, but seeking financial growth for the sake of it is a big worry.   South Australia has seen a large increase in Interstate Charities targeting our State for growth and development.   I don't see too many seeking partnerships with existing services.   Small charities such as ours face challenging times, as the big end of "Charity Town" continues its seeming quest for dominance from across the border.

25/07/2008 The DPP Stephen Pallaras gave a great presentation on aspects of justice to the OARS SA Public Forum held on Thursday 24th July.   A large audience attended, with  several politicians and a number of Year 12 Students from Charles Campbell Secondary School had come along as part of their year 12 legal studies subject.   The meeting was very positive and most people stayed behind for dialogue and networking.   OARS SA is most grateful to the DPP for taking the time to share his thoughts with us.    His views were extremely interesting and well considered, albeit critical of current law and justice policy in this State and around the country.

OARS SA continues to question the cost-effectiveness of the "Get Tough on Crime Mantra".   OARS SA has commissioned research to better understand the nature of the costs of crime and its impact in SA over the next 10 years.   We also point to a recent article by the NSW Bureau of Crime statistics.    This Crime and Justice Research Bulletin No 93 is an exemplary piece of research which questions the cost-benefit of the increasing use of prison as the primary crimeprevention methodology.