By Robbie Brown
The teenage inmates in Pollsmoor Prison's Management Area enjoyed a one-day break from their usual routine when visitors arrived on Tuesday to celebrate International Children's Day.
The inmates, aged 14 to 18, heard motivational speeches from public figures, including deputy minister of Correctional Services Cheryl Gillwald.
"Prison is not for children. We want you outside," Gillwald said.
| 'teenagers return to jail multiple times because they're unprepared for life on the outside' |
Gillwald challenged the inmates to turn their lives around and abandon drugs and violence. "You might be in a prison today. But remember, so was Mandela," she said.
However, many teenage inmates said they've found it difficult to break their habits of drug abuse and violence. Despite their youth, many of them have already served multiple prison sentences.
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Some inmates complained about rampant fighting and gang violence within the prison. Many of them bore self-made tattoos of numbers and symbols representing different gangs on their forearms and faces.
"This place is not right. I want to go home and I miss my mother," said one inmate, who could not be identified because he is a minor.
"Prison is hell. They hit you and take your stuff," said another inmate, who is awaiting a sentence for murder.
At the ceremony, about a dozen female inmates brought their babies and toddlers.
One woman named Tracy, who lives with her four-month-old daughter inside the prison, is serving a 10-month sentence for fraud.
"I regret what I did because it effects my child negatively. There's a lot of guilt involved because you feel guilty for putting your child in these circumstances," said Tracy, who declined to give her surname.
Christopher Malgas, a unit manager in the jail's juvenile section, said the teenagers face difficult living circumstances inside the prison.
"Prison is not a place for kids. The parents must take responsibility," he said. "Very often," he said, "teenagers return to jail multiple times because they're unprepared for life on the outside.
"These boys need psychological and emotional support because they're coming from a broken system," he said.
- This article was originally published on page 6 of Cape Times on June 01, 2005
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