A coalition of academics, crime experts, welfare and church groups is preparing to launch an intensive pre-election campaign aimed at refocusing the attention of NSW politicians from harsh sentencing reforms to crime prevention strategies.The group includes the NSW Council of Social Service (NCOSS), the Conference of Leaders of Religious Institutes, and academics from the Universities of Sydney, NSW and Western Sydney. It has pledged to try and provide a new balance in the law and order debate, calling for an end to the increasingly "harsh and irrational" policies proposed by both major parties in NSW.
The director of NCOSS, Alan Kirkland, said the group met officially for the first time last year under the banner "Beyond Bars", with the aim of forcing politicians to address the causes of crime.
"We formed because we don't think that NSW can afford another law and order election," he said. "Every small increase in the prison population costs millions of dollars each year, which is money that then cannot be spent on education, health, community services and the very things likely to prevent crime in the longer term.
"We are also trying to take on the myths that underpin this whole debate, such as the myth that crime is always worse than in the past. If you look at the homicide rate, it is the same as or even less than 100 years ago."
The coalition is preparing a series of fact sheets, which it will disseminate via member church and community groups, to provide voters with "a truer story" on crime rates, imprisonment statistics and the efficacy of mandatory sentencing in other jurisdictions.
New fact sheets on policing, victims of crime, mental illness and crime, youth crime and Aboriginal imprisonment are also in train.
Mr Kirkland said the campaign launch, scheduled for February 14, would also aim to provide cost analyses of alternatives to prison, as well as providing a "bigger picture" economic review of the corrective services budget in comparison to portfolios like education, health and community services.
Academic members of the group include Dr Eileen Baldry, of the University of NSW's school of social work and Chris Cuneen, the director of Sydney University's institute of criminology.
Mr Kirkland said the coalition would also provide a critique of the major parties' law and order policies to help voters distinguish between pre-poll promises.
"Most people don't realise, for example, that the rate of imprisonment in NSW is double that of Victoria. We can break out of this cycle ... Surely people do not see Victoria as far more dangerous than NSW just because it locks up fewer people," he said.
Welcome to the Beyond Bars Alliance website
The Beyond Bars Alliance (BBA) is a coalition of community and church organisations, activist groups, academics and individuals with an interest in social justice.
The purpose of the alliance is to promote social justice solutions to a range of criminal justice system issues with a particular focus on finding alternatives to imprisonment. It also aims to dispel common myths about 'law and order'.
The alliance first agreed to come together for the period leading up to the 2003 NSW state election. For a list of the founding members of the Beyond Bars Alliance click here. The BBA continues to attempt to influence public debate, opinion and policy
By Beyond Bars Alliance 30 Jan 03
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