18 January 2010

Can ACT prisoners read The-RiotACT.com?

| Skidbladnir
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According to this ABC Article, the Alexander Maconochie Cuddleprison has been having trouble with their internet.
Specifically, despite internet access being one of the privilege afforded to prisoners, their chosen filtering solution was still allowing prisoners to send untraceable and anonymous messages, by using news websites and other such facilities.
The Shadow Corrections Minister, Jeremy Hanson, went so far as to question why such access was being allowed at all, as it potentially granted ‘Inappropriate access, such that prisoners could be able to intimidate witnesses, affect the course of their trial by contacting the media, or conduct illegal activities’.

While the Opposition want internet access removed entirely, Labor are taking a more lenient approach, consistent with internet access being deemed a human right in some circles.

Joy Burch’s comment of “We’ve closed the sites we consider to be at risk and that we know of, so they’ve been closed down” makes me think firstly that our Minister for Corrections isn’t aware of exactly how accessing the internet works nor where her authority ends, but secondly that the AMC filtering solution is just using simple blacklisting methods.
The most common downsides to blacklist options are that the blacklist needs to be constantly maintained, and that prisoners are likely to access inappropriate websites faster than they can be blacklisted.
Considering that internet access is apparently an earned privilege, and approved on a case-by-case basis, with potential risks to public safety associated with outgoing communications, hasn’t the Minister for Corrections ever heard of whitelisting instead?

[Ed] This also came in from ADZA

The ABC News Website http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2010/01/14/2792437.htm reports today that the ACT Opposition is concerned a prisoner at the Canberra jail has been able to send an offensive email to a news organisation. This comes at the time when a needle exchange program is being looked at for the same prison.

What’s going on with jails (gaols if you want to be Australian) these days? There was once a time when you were locked up, that you had your privileges removed. How are the inmates getting needles and drugs in the first place? Why are they able to access the internet?

I guess this is from a “centre” that doesn’t even have the word “jail” in its name, so it comes to me as no surprise.

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Myles Peterson said :

@xtremecrim “…..even in education we still had no access to anything useful…..”

That’s a pity, there’s so much good stuff online now. Could you access Wikipedia?

And are the inmates allowed to play games? Which ones? I used to do raids with a few guys serving time in the States when I was on the warcrack.

Oh, and anything uber nerdy like DnD? Always thought it would be a fascinating exercise in that environment.

I don’t think many people can access wikipedia today unfortionatly :'(

PBO said :

I would not want them to have it at all, they are prisoners. When someone is a prisoner they should be treated as such. I myself would like to see supervised chain gangs working in the community doing things like repairs, clean-ups, area beautification etc, etc….

The follow on effect would be good for the local community, rates would be lowered as local govenment would not have to spend heaps on private contractors. Offenders would be publicly visible and shamed in the process (Guilt works wonders for repeat offenders). Canberra would be a better place.

Maybe offenders could also reduce their sentences by doing more of this work. I think that it is a waste of taxpayers money to have these folk lazing around a jail all day when they could be put to good use. Why have many thousands of dollars worth of glass artwork when we could have a factory or workshop there?

I think this is one of the most sensible ideas yet. Landscaping, gardening, cleaning up graffiti, maintenance work, etc, etc, would all go a long way towards giving the prisoners something to do, keeping them and their minds active, helping them develop some pride in the city as well as in the work of their hands, and even teaching useful skills that can assist in employment upon release. A hard day’s work does wonders for the mind and body.

It would seem that ACT Corrective Services are pretty naive compared with their counterparts in other jurisdictions.

I would be most concerned to learn that certain prisoners have access to email (and they should bear in mind that most tertiary institution websites give students access to email).

Eg, people charged with, sentenced for, or with a history of, sex offences, stalking/harassment, fraud, etc, should not have access to the internet. Often the most ‘well-behaved’ prisoners are child sex offenders, who can’t wait to get out and start offending again and therefore are at pains to keep a low profile. Ironically, these horrid people are usually trouble-free inmates and therefore need their ‘low risk’ classification manually overridden.

xtremecrim said :

as a former inmate of the AMC the internet access was restricted we had email and only a few sites we could access even in education we still had no access to anything useful…..

Call me crazy but if you wanted unrestricted internet access you could say… oh I dont know, not do things that land you in jail?

Internet access is a privilege not a right. Your life isn’t going to be degraded in any severe from without access to it.

Skidbladnir said :

Pommy bastard said :

“Internet access is a human right”? PC madness at its most rarefied, stop the world I want to get off..

The nation of Estonia declared it a human right in 2004, France’s Constitutional Council interprets it as a basic right, Finland does it too.
Greece has a part of their Constituion which specifically identifies that ‘All persons are entitled to participate in the Information Society. Facilitation of access to electronically handled information, as well as of the production, exchange and diffusion thereof constitutes an obligation of the State’

As much as I think the AMC is a joke, and our Human Rights Act is the more terrible pieces of legislation the ACT has created, the HRA2004 is still a law on the books, and so our government needs to act within its own laws.

Human Rights Act 2004:
16. Freedom of expression
(1) Everyone has the right to hold opinions without interference.
(2) Everyone has the right to freedom of expression. This right includes the freedom to seek, receive and impart information and ideas of all kinds, regardless of borders, whether orally, in writing or in print, by way of art, or in another way chosen by him or her.

Still, I’d suggest some kind of ‘submit your request to access specific websites on a case-by-case basis, and after investigation by JCS IT Services, it may be added to your whitelist’ proposal, instead of blocking access after an incident.

I’m foiled by Estonia, yet again!!

Myles Peterson11:24 am 19 Jan 12

@xtremecrim “…..even in education we still had no access to anything useful…..”

That’s a pity, there’s so much good stuff online now. Could you access Wikipedia?

And are the inmates allowed to play games? Which ones? I used to do raids with a few guys serving time in the States when I was on the warcrack.

Oh, and anything uber nerdy like DnD? Always thought it would be a fascinating exercise in that environment.

as a former inmate of the AMC the internet access was restricted we had email and only a few sites we could access even in education we still had no access to anything useful…..

Mordd

I remember the case clearly when a young man was bashed and died, he was put in prison for unpaid parking fines, I suggest you look it up! Instead of ranting and raving about something you haven’t done your homework on!!!

Reid 60#
yes they can if someone breaks an order, that’s one that I know of.

sepi 47#

Spot on, I believe if finds are not paid you loose your licence.

I’m all for privillages, and skills, somthing for the guards to take away when being locked up isn’t enough of a hint that “YOUR BEING BAD”!

Like I said in a post a bit to controversial, some of the discussions on this board are very bold.

My respect Riotact/ters.

On the subject of conditions, I hear the girls have it very good, the other side of the fence, I have no interest in going back to check the new one out (as a male) not even as an occasional Pri$on rights activist for ABC and Justice Action. By the way, Denis Fergusons association with JA upsets and disgusts me. Child abusers of his nature should never be given the opportunity to re-offend, and JAs successes with this creature have lost my support, there are so many other prisoners worthy of support, child abusers like ferguson are not worth protecting or supporting.

I wasn’t aware magistrates jailed people in the ACT?

I think they still imprison fine defaulters in WA . . . hence their massive overcrowding problems and major indigenous incarceration rates – basically a debtor’s prison.

Nevertheless, people on remand who have not been found guilty should not be treated the same as convicted prisoners, as they are technically innocent. In some Aust jurisdictions, people can remain on remand for over two years, which is very poor. I agree that internet access is an incentive that should be a privilege some prisoners can earn, depending on their classification.

In my book, the real problem with the current justice system is chronic court delays.

If remandees were tried straight away,

(a) it would be more connected with actual events, which is far better for their remorse/rehabilitation (just like we discipline our children straight away and don’t punish them ages after a misdemeanor)

(b) they would immediately have access to relevant prison programs to assist their rehabilitation. They are not eligible for programs until found guilty. This is such as waste of time when they are essentially a ‘captive audience’ while in custody. Depending on the sentence length and time on remand, they currently have a good chance of missing out altogether; and

(c) people found not guilty would not be stuck in prison for way too long, which might give them grounds to sue for wrongful imprisonment. Guess who would have to pay out?

It does the community no earthly good to continually increase police resources to catch more crims, if the upshot is that, due to court delays, the crims just churn in and out of prison without addressing their issues. They will just re-offend. Lucky us. IMHO, the DPP and Courts need to be adequately resourced in parallel with law enforcement, or the money spent on incarceration etc is simply wasted without a positive outcome.

Something to think about that hasn’t been mentioned yet:

Internet access could be an earned privelege for good behaviour. If you behave yourself in prison, you get access to all sorts of goodies like TVs, toasters and probably computers. If you’re naughty, you get these things taken away.

If there are no incentives for good behaviour in prison, you get naughty crooks who are harder to manage. It’s easy to sprout lines like “They did the crime, lock ’em up with no rights” etc but if I was the warden in charge of managing inmates’ behaviour, I’d like to have some rewards like internet access up my sleeve.

Mord,

you wont go to AMC for unpaid parking or speeding tickets etc. The upaid fines that you will go there for are for unpaid court fines. If a magistrate finds you guilty for something and then gives gives you a fine. In the end if you dont pay the fine you can end up in AMC to “work it off”. I think the rate is about $120 a day, or there abouts.

georgesgenitals7:25 am 22 Jan 10

Deadmandrinking said :

Internet Filters, Monitoring.

Two things which will prevent an otherwise educational tool from being used incorrectly. Do people believe that prisoners should not have access to educational tools in prison? Don’t complain when they get out with no education and go back to what they were doing before.

I applaud your thinking DMD, but in reality these things won’t solve the problem. Filters and monitoring won’t pick up message being passed by ‘acceptable’ web sites to and criminal associates. Of course, they won’t all do this, bu I’d be willing to bet a number will. Bear in mind that the majority (and I’m being generous here, it’s probably all) of people locked up are in their because of major or multiple criminal acts.

Mike Crowther said :

I know the ACT does still have the incarceration of fine defaulters on it’s books…

Interesting, it appears im not wrong on the possibility of someone being incareated for unpaid fines in Canberra then.

IMHO sometimes its necessary to go to the opposite extreme in order to counter the existing extremist views.

RE: People being locked up at the AMC for parking fines specifically – well this was an educated guess on my part based on general familiarity with ACT, NSW and Victorian legislation. If ACT legislation has changed and people are no longer incarerated for unpaid parking fines specifically – then I applaud that – would be interested to see some proof of this though, I am aware of people being locked up in NSW at least in the last few years for unpaid traffic fines. People are regularly incarcated for what most in society would classify as “minor crimes” and you have to ask wether incarcerating these people is more sending them to criminal school than actually a just punishment for the crime, and wether it has any real rehabilitative or detterent effect on people locked up for minor crimes, if it doesn’t then whats the point really?

@ Tooks – My sarcasm in reply to your comment was fairly obvious I would have thought, I was taking what I saw as one of the more knee-jerk comments and expanding on it. No I don’t think email use should be monitored and pre-screened any more than phone calls or other forms of communication should be, obviously we differ in opinion on this.

@ youami – if they want to play browser games on the internet I don’t see a problem with this. As to more serious offences, I would have no problem the AMC providing internet access / computer access on a priveledges basis, ie: you must earn the right and if you do the wrong thing you lose the right, that to me seems like a perfectly fair way of mainting the system. Blacklisting is obviously innefective, I see no problem with almost unfettered access and everything is monitored during/after the fact, and misuse of the system results in a zero tolerance ban from access. However as has already been pointed out, the ACT’s own Huma Rights legislation appears to mandate differently, i’ll leave that specific part of the argument to others though.

Deadmandrinking6:03 pm 21 Jan 10

I’m sorry Mike, but that’s just a black/white, unrealistic view of the world. There are many people out there who have left behind lives of crime to pursue honest ones. Think of people who’ve been stupid in their teens and woken up a little later to realize exactly how stupid they’ve been.

A criminal plumber is better than an uneducated criminal, anyway. At least they’ll fix your toilet.

Mike Crowther4:52 pm 21 Jan 10

Good in theory Deadmandrinking. The reality is that almost without exception, if you teach a criminal plumbing, all you will get is a criminal plumber. Same goes for I.T.

Deadmandrinking11:34 am 21 Jan 10

Internet Filters, Monitoring.

Two things which will prevent an otherwise educational tool from being used incorrectly. Do people believe that prisoners should not have access to educational tools in prison? Don’t complain when they get out with no education and go back to what they were doing before.

Mike Crowther9:59 am 21 Jan 10

Sorry Sepi, but I hate seeing history become folklore. The teenager (Jamie Partlic)wasn’t killed, he was badly bashed. He wasn’t doing ‘parking fines’ he was cutting out court fines for other matters. It wasn’t a random attack, he had made enemies in the criminal underworld. They didnt stop locking up fine defaulters because of it, but because the cost far exceeded the fines owing. What they did do was build seperate facilities to house fine defaulters rather than throw them in the main. The last fine defaulter I saw in NSW was in the mid 90’s. (An old bloke who’d refused to pay a fine for ‘Have unregistered dog’ actually).
He did 1 day.

I know the ACT does still have the incarceration of fine defaulters on it’s books, but don’t know if it’s still enforced. Internet access? That’s a whole other can of worms. I’m sure I highly experienced Minister is on top of all the issues and knows exactly what’s to be done in all circumstances. (Though I’m tipping some bloody good jury tampering on the horizon).

…so much for freedom of speech RiotACT…sheesh!

They stopped putting people in weekend gaol for parking fines about 20 years ago when a teenager was killed on weekend detention in sydney, in gaol for 2 days for parking fines.

I doubt there is anyone in our local lock-up for a ‘minor crime’. Maybe for a whole string of ‘minor’ crimes like burglary. Usually the judges here seem to give people a few chances (or 20) to sort themselves out.

Mordd said :

Maybe some of you would look at this differently if you were incarcerated for unpaid parking fines, or if it was a family member incarcerated for another minor crime. This whole “they are criminals and deserve no rights” attitude just makes me sick to my stomach. It is such a black and white view of an issue that is nothing but many shades of grey. Of course I really shouldn’t expect any different from the armchair vigilantes on this site, but the attitude still disgusts me.

Tooks said :

They shouldn’t be allowed email unless it is looked at by staff before it is sent. The Human Rights Act is the biggest load of bollocks in the history of ACT Legislation.

Lets remove their rights to private conversations with their lawyer as well while we’re at it, we should also probably remove any access to legal resources as well, can’t have these filthy criminals actually having a chance at defending themselves can we? After all anyone charged with a crime or found guilty at trial is never innocent, people never get committed before trial then found innocent, theres never been a case of a conviction being overturned on appeal, etc… so obviously anyone in there gets what they deserve right.

hellspice said :

wonder what graphics cards the computers have and can you play online games ?

I would guess: NONE and: NO in answer to your “wondering”. I wonder if you really thought this though or just though that a comment like that was a good way to stir the pot a bit more among those that think people incarcerated should have no rights. I will bet $100 – payable to a charity of choice if anyone can prove the PC’s are anything older than older model integrated grpahics with no real gaming capability or capability other than email/web/word-processing cabaility.

Now I won’t lure into an argument with you, but how many people are incarcerated at AMC for unpaid parking fines? And btw, a parking fine is an offence and an unpaid one is a further offence. No matter how you think it, if someone gets a parking fine and then doesn’t pay it, tough! You broke the law! Simple! Clear as black and white! If a family member of mine is incarcerated why would that alter my views? If my brother or sister or mother or father or whoever committed an offence, I would be embarrassed, I would be somewhat reluctant to publicise it as my family name would be scarred, but hey I would still gladly have my family member sans-privileges. I love my family but still. They broke the law! Simple! Clear as black and white! Family or not!

And giving offenders access to legal advice and defence is soooo totally different to access to public and free internet and information. Offenders and criminals should not be afforded the freedoms that they DO NOT deserve. That is why they are incarcerated. If we loosen up the punishment why have goals at all? If someone was possibly incarcerated for the wrong reasons then there are always exceptions, and yes I agree everyone is innocent until proven guilty, but… but…, surely the coppers don’t get it that wrong, do they? C’mon Mordd let’s be reasonable. I would pay your $100 wager if you can prove to me that the ‘wrong-conviction’ rate would be any higher than say 1-2%. IMHO they get it pretty right.

And without playing Devil’s advocate, I think hellspice was taking the p!ss. But having said that my first computer was a C-64 in 1988 (or thereabouts) and I could play some really cool games, no need for fancy graphics. Oh and online games rarely require graphics and processing power on the local computer because processing is done at the server – the computer is a thin client of sorts.

P.S. No family member was harmed in the writing of this post, nor were they incarcerated. 🙂

eyeLikeCarrots said :

…. *cough* redneck…

Jim Jones said :

…. the spittle-flecked rage of an impotent internet lynch mob?

I love how some people are almost violently intolerant of people who don’t measure up to their version of ….’tolerance’.

And Mordd, are there people in AMC for parking fines? How long are they in for? I thought you had to be at least a mass murderer to do serious porridge in the ACT.

Since we’re creating straw men, how about sex offenders. Should they be allowed unfettered Internet access?

Skidbladnir said :

Tooks said :

By the way, this part of the Human Rights Act is applicable to *everyone* – not just crooks:

16. Freedom of expression
(1) Everyone has the right to hold opinions without interference.
(2) Everyone has the right to freedom of expression.

I have some bad news for you, Tooks…
As it says in Part 5A, Section 40, of the Human Rights Act 2004, the Act only applies to ACT Government administrative units (ie: Departments), Territory Authorities, Territory Instruments, Ministers, police officers (but only when exercising function under Territory law), persons acting with public authority (ie: ACT Govt employees), or charities who have been delegated a function either under contract or public authorisation.
Nobody else cared enough to play along.

As much as I appreciate your research, I should say there was more than a little bit of tongue-in-cheek regarding my original comment about this legislation.

Apologies for stuffing up the quotes in that last post.

Tooks said :

They shouldn’t be allowed email unless it is looked at by staff before it is sent. The Human Rights Act is the biggest load of bollocks in the history of ACT Legislation.

Lets remove their rights to private conversations with their lawyer as well while we’re at it, we should also probably remove any access to legal resources as well, can’t have these filthy criminals actually having a chance at defending themselves can we? After all anyone charged with a crime or found guilty at trial is never innocent, people never get committed before trial then found innocent, theres never been a case of a conviction being overturned on appeal, etc… so obviously anyone in there gets what they deserve right.

God, grow up. If you can’t understand why email (and internet use) from prisoners needs to be strictly supervised, then you have no common sense whatsoever. I never said criminals shouldn’t have conversations with their lawyers (as you well know); that was an idiotic comment.

Hells_Bells744:22 pm 20 Jan 10

Bloody well said Mordd.. I was just saying to my partner yesterday much the same as you said in the first part.

Humanity takes a dive to some do-gooders, until they are there.

Come on Mordd, who are you to defy the spittle-flecked rage of an impotent internet lynch mob?

Maybe some of you would look at this differently if you were incarcerated for unpaid parking fines, or if it was a family member incarcerated for another minor crime. This whole “they are criminals and deserve no rights” attitude just makes me sick to my stomach. It is such a black and white view of an issue that is nothing but many shades of grey. Of course I really shouldn’t expect any different from the armchair vigilantes on this site, but the attitude still disgusts me.

Tooks said :

They shouldn’t be allowed email unless it is looked at by staff before it is sent. The Human Rights Act is the biggest load of bollocks in the history of ACT Legislation.

Lets remove their rights to private conversations with their lawyer as well while we’re at it, we should also probably remove any access to legal resources as well, can’t have these filthy criminals actually having a chance at defending themselves can we? After all anyone charged with a crime or found guilty at trial is never innocent, people never get committed before trial then found innocent, theres never been a case of a conviction being overturned on appeal, etc… so obviously anyone in there gets what they deserve right.

hellspice said :

wonder what graphics cards the computers have and can you play online games ?

I would guess: NONE and: NO in answer to your “wondering”. I wonder if you really thought this though or just though that a comment like that was a good way to stir the pot a bit more among those that think people incarcerated should have no rights. I will bet $100 – payable to a charity of choice if anyone can prove the PC’s are anything older than older model integrated grpahics with no real gaming capability or capability other than email/web/word-processing cabaility.

Tooks said :

By the way, this part of the Human Rights Act is applicable to *everyone* – not just crooks:

16. Freedom of expression
(1) Everyone has the right to hold opinions without interference.
(2) Everyone has the right to freedom of expression.

I have some bad news for you, Tooks…
As it says in Part 5A, Section 40, of the Human Rights Act 2004, the Act only applies to ACT Government administrative units (ie: Departments), Territory Authorities, Territory Instruments, Ministers, police officers (but only when exercising function under Territory law), persons acting with public authority (ie: ACT Govt employees), or charities who have been delegated a function either under contract or public authorisation.
Nobody else cared enough to play along.

DavoDavo said :

youami said :

s-s-a said :

… In fact, you also get paid for going to gaol for doing nothing! …

Holy crap! They get PAID?!? My gob has never been so smacked.

Yep as far as I am aware… although probably more called an allowance so they can buy smokes etc.

Trunking symbols said :

I’d rather they had a gym there than sitting down all day at a computer. There is no gym at the moment (or so I’ve heard).

Oh and my bad about the gym, I thought all gaols had to have one. It is Human Rights after all :p

Aurelius said :

Tooks said :

They shouldn’t be allowed email unless it is looked at by staff before it is sent. The Human Rights Act is the biggest load of bollocks in the history of ACT Legislation.

Is it appropriate that a serving police officer have this attitude toward a piece of legislation that it is his duty to enforce, or abide by?

I do though agree that net access in the facility should be restricted, quite substantially. But given that some in the facility are awaiting trial, and as such are still under the “innocent until proven guilty” banner, should they be allowed to communicate with members of the outside world?

Actually, I’ve never discussed what I do for a living, for the same reason I don’t talk about where I live, what I drive, as well as family details etc. If people want to make assumptions about what I do, that’s fine. My occupation, be it cop, baker, doctor, lawyer etc is irrelevant, as any opinion I express on this site is my own.

By the way, this part of the Human Rights Act is applicable to *everyone* – not just crooks:

16. Freedom of expression
(1) Everyone has the right to hold opinions without interference.
(2) Everyone has the right to freedom of expression.

BTW, I’m aware of the irony of bagging the legislation, then quoting it to defend the right to express an opinion regardless of occupation.

Can they read?

Hells_Bells748:20 am 20 Jan 10

Also.. Start Menu > Accessories > Accessibility > On-Screen Keyboard.

The original Canberra Times article about this stuff-up, which ironically does not appear to be online, said the prisoners had access only to white-listed websites. Can’t remember entirely, but I think the websites have to be based on religion, news or something else to get onto the list. I’m unsure whether the RiotACT would make it – maybe as a religion for some of the prolific posters here?

Funky1 said :

Give them a whitelist of sites they can access (set on the computer’s “favourites” list) but only equip the computer with a mouse and no keyboard. So that can surf till their heart’s content but they can’t communicate with the outside world.

Start menu > All Programs > Accessories > System Tools > Character Map … you can now write with a mouse, albeit very slowly.

When confined to prison, where better place to research future crimes than the Internet?

I don’t care if they have internet access. they have to do something all day, besides sitting around dreaming up more crimes.

I wonder if the prisoners work in the prison, eg: making number plates, maybe they should put them on road gangs, chained while working, the government would save money!

It’s understandable, all hotels have computers with internet access these days..

Human Rights. Nice concept.

Didn’t these people break laws? Hurt or in some cases kill people, steal other peoples stuff, attack and seriously injure people, attack or rape people? Isn’t that what they are in jail for?

How does a person who assaults or rapes or steals or kills another and impact their victims human rights deserve internet access? Isn’t jail about punishment and rehabilitation? And before the bleeding hearts get onto me, I do not believe that rehabilitation means internet access!

Aurelius said :

Tooks said :

They shouldn’t be allowed email unless it is looked at by staff before it is sent. The Human Rights Act is the biggest load of bollocks in the history of ACT Legislation.

Is it appropriate that a serving police officer have this attitude toward a piece of legislation that it is his duty to enforce, or abide by?

So, Tooks is not allowed to have an opinion then is it ?? Once you become a Police Officer, you loose your basic human right to be free to have and express an opinion ??

Is it possible that one can enforce the law even if they don’t fully agree or like the law? It’s called professionalism ….. People are expected to abide by laws EVEN if they don’t agree or like said laws.

Police are human you know, they don’t come out of Recruit training as Robots !!!!

Trunking symbols5:02 pm 19 Jan 10

I’d rather they had a gym there than sitting down all day at a computer. There is no gym at the moment (or so I’ve heard).

Aurelius said :

Tooks said :

They shouldn’t be allowed email unless it is looked at by staff before it is sent. The Human Rights Act is the biggest load of bollocks in the history of ACT Legislation.

Is it appropriate that a serving police officer have this attitude toward a piece of legislation that it is his duty to enforce, or abide by?

I think that it represents Tooks personal opinion, not his professional one. I personally think that they should bring back corporal punishment in schools and capital punishment in courts (Only if proven beyond a resonable doubt).

youami said :

s-s-a said :

… In fact, you also get paid for going to gaol for doing nothing! …

Holy crap! They get PAID?!? My gob has never been so smacked.

Give them a whitelist of sites they can access (set on the computer’s “favourites” list) but only equip the computer with a mouse and no keyboard. So that can surf till their heart’s content but they can’t communicate with the outside world.

if they do have access, i would have thought riotact would be their default homepage, no?

hello, hm guests! how’s the inside going for you today?

krats said :

Leave em alone…Most of them are innocent,and should not even be there.

Do I smell a troll…?

wonder what graphics cards the computers have and can you play online games ?

Tooks said :

They shouldn’t be allowed email unless it is looked at by staff before it is sent. The Human Rights Act is the biggest load of bollocks in the history of ACT Legislation.

Is it appropriate that a serving police officer have this attitude toward a piece of legislation that it is his duty to enforce, or abide by?

I do though agree that net access in the facility should be restricted, quite substantially. But given that some in the facility are awaiting trial, and as such are still under the “innocent until proven guilty” banner, should they be allowed to communicate with members of the outside world?

s-s-a said :

Buy them an AM/FM radio and a newspaper subscription. Give them some paper and a pen. That should about cover their rights under the HRA.

I totally agree! They are prisoners after all, they have been convicted of at least one offence to the extent that the powers that be feel the conviction warranted incarceration (and rehabilitation if that is possible). IMHO they therefore forfeit their rights to freedom and thus access to all things available to the public because they did something wrong, most likely something seriously wrong. I don’t judge those who are in prison, however, you do the crime, do the time, and learn from it.

When prisoners are afforded free internet, television, drugs, needles, meals, accommodation, etc etc, maybe it is the free society that should be incarcerated and the prisoners left to roam the streets at their peril? That way the law-abiding citizens will be able to avoid paying rent, avoid paying for expensive and innefficient and inadeqaute broadband, avoid telephone and mobile phone access charges, avoid paying for groceries, and will recieve three hearty meals a day, not to mention free use of exercise equipment, organised sporting events, and the comfort of living in a gated community. In fact, you also get paid for going to gaol for doing nothing! Lastly, the AMC is apparently the most righteous place of all gaols (aka Centres), so for all us free good law-abiding citizens of Canberra we will be living a luxury home away from home whilst the prisoners will be turfed and have the fend for themselves out in the big horrid expensive and ‘no-free-ride’ real world. The prisoners will even have to work to get paid.

Just think about it…

Maxxiz “They deserve food water and a bed. Nothing more.”
So you would expect nothing more on release than the same old behaviour.

No internet. Make it part of their restriction from freedom. Email I have no problem with. Its a mail service. Attachments would have to be dealt with some how. But that cant be much of a problem beyond what already happens with regular mail.

Prisoners should have access to a digital library. Packed full of legal, health, and educational material. Provided by the ACT library service maybe. Maybe this is already in place. Seems a bit of an obvious solution.

Leave em alone…Most of them are innocent,and should not even be there.

Bring back flogging for misdemeanours, I say. That’d stop those miscreants from abusing their “rights”.

Pommy bastard11:21 am 19 Jan 10

The act should be amended to recognise that people forfeit certain rights when they are found guilty of a crime.

Human Rights also mean we have have a reasonable expectation that we wont be smacked in the face with a broken glass, wont get threatened with knives during an armed Hold up and won’t see other people murdered in cold blood, If you deprive other people of their basic human rights then you lose them yourself in my book. It’s supposed to be a loss of freedom not a holiday home with all creature comforts.

Maybe we should put our prisoners to work cleaning windscreens at major intersections. Oh, hang on…

Buy them an AM/FM radio and a newspaper subscription. Give them some paper and a pen. That should about cover their rights under the HRA.

I agree with the basic principle of allowing prisoners to hold an opinion and express themselves. This is tempered by the realisation that they are in prison because they have at some level failed to conform to basic standards of civilised society (such as: do no harm). If they choose to seek ideas on the Internet, they should be allowed to do so, after getting permission from the warden.

They should certainly not be allowed access to forums/blogs/wikis/flickr/facebook or any other site which allows the visitor to publish stuff.

They shouldn’t be allowed email unless it is looked at by staff before it is sent. The Human Rights Act is the biggest load of bollocks in the history of ACT Legislation.

Pommy bastard said :

“Internet access is a human right”? PC madness at its most rarefied, stop the world I want to get off..

The nation of Estonia declared it a human right in 2004, France’s Constitutional Council interprets it as a basic right, Finland does it too.
Greece has a part of their Constituion which specifically identifies that ‘All persons are entitled to participate in the Information Society. Facilitation of access to electronically handled information, as well as of the production, exchange and diffusion thereof constitutes an obligation of the State’

As much as I think the AMC is a joke, and our Human Rights Act is the more terrible pieces of legislation the ACT has created, the HRA2004 is still a law on the books, and so our government needs to act within its own laws.

Human Rights Act 2004:
16. Freedom of expression
(1) Everyone has the right to hold opinions without interference.
(2) Everyone has the right to freedom of expression. This right includes the freedom to seek, receive and impart information and ideas of all kinds, regardless of borders, whether orally, in writing or in print, by way of art, or in another way chosen by him or her.

Still, I’d suggest some kind of ‘submit your request to access specific websites on a case-by-case basis, and after investigation by JCS IT Services, it may be added to your whitelist’ proposal, instead of blocking access after an incident.

I’m afraid in thewse modern and enlightened times we’re not allowed to shame them or make them feel guilty lest it damage their delicate psyches. grrrrrr

I would not want them to have it at all, they are prisoners. When someone is a prisoner they should be treated as such. I myself would like to see supervised chain gangs working in the community doing things like repairs, clean-ups, area beautification etc, etc….

The follow on effect would be good for the local community, rates would be lowered as local govenment would not have to spend heaps on private contractors. Offenders would be publicly visible and shamed in the process (Guilt works wonders for repeat offenders). Canberra would be a better place.

Maybe offenders could also reduce their sentences by doing more of this work. I think that it is a waste of taxpayers money to have these folk lazing around a jail all day when they could be put to good use. Why have many thousands of dollars worth of glass artwork when we could have a factory or workshop there?

Give them an intranet with no external connectivity, and post up read only versions of websites deemed appropriate.

eyeLikeCarrots8:40 am 19 Jan 10

Maxxiz said :

But yeah, i think its ridiculous them having internet access there. The net is not a human right… They have done something bad enough to end them up in there. They deserve food water and a bed. Nothing more.

You heard that on 2UE huh ? *cough* redneck… “Lock em up and throw away the key”…

On a more serious note – how can uninformed, techno-phobe luddites like some govt rats make sensible decisions about technology…. case in point.. a certain Minister for Mis-Communications and Gestapo thinking a simple internet filter was a good idea.

Pommy bastard7:36 am 19 Jan 10

“Internet access is a human right”? PC madness at its most rarefied, stop the world I want to get off..

futto said :

I hope they block bittorrent. Would not want them download episodes of Prison Break.

Hahahahahahaha

But yeah, i think its ridiculous them having internet access there. The net is not a human right… They have done something bad enough to end them up in there. They deserve food water and a bed. Nothing more.

I hope they block bittorrent. Would not want them download episodes of Prison Break.

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