Prisoner Voting Rights

The Institute of Criminology, University of Sydney is pleased to announce a public seminar:?

Speaker: Debra Parkes, University of Manitoba, Canada Ms Parkes will speak on "Prisoner Voting Rights in Canada: Rejecting the Notion of Temporary Outcasts" and will discuss the implications of the Canadian Supreme Court's reasoning in a decision declaring unconstitutional a prisoner voting ban.

Chair: Bryan Mercurio, Faculty of Law, University of New South Wales and former Director of the Electoral Law Project at the Gilbert + Tobin Centre of Public Law

Date: Thursday 1st September 2005, 5.30pm - 7.30pm

Venue: Minter Ellison Conference Room, level 13, Sydney University Law School, 173-175 Phillip Street, Sydney

Registration: $15 waged/$10 students/concession (GST incl.) No charge for Institute of Criminology members.

To register please contact the Institute directly.

By Nina Ralph posted 15 August 05

Nina Ralph, Administrator, ninar@law.usyd.edu.au
Bronwyn Finnigan, Assistant Administrator, bronwynf@law.usyd.edu.au
Institute of Criminology
Sydney University Law School
173-175 Phillip Street
Sydney NSW 2000, Australia
Phone: (61) (2) 9351 0239
Fax: (61) (2) 9351 0200 Attn: Institute of Criminology
Email: criminology@law.usyd.edu.au

Related:

POLITICAL 'GAGGING' IN THE WEST
To this focus, I mirrored the comments of Mr Graeme Orr ('Just Us', December, 2004, p.4) that following a High Court ruling, "...prisoners are entitled to read and share political information", and further, "...we are free to exchange and discuss political information and international affairs."

Justice Action: Access to our community
NSW: Justice Action went to the NSW Supreme Court before the last Federal election on the constitutional right for prisoners to receive information for their vote. The government avoided the hearing by bringing prisoners' mobile polling booths forward. We pursued it after the election. This is the report.

REPORT: AUSTRALIAN PRISONERS' ELECTION NEWSPAPER
There was high drama as the only state prisons department in Australia to refuse the The Australian Prisoners' Election Newspaper, was challenged in an emergency hearing before the NSW Supreme Court.

'HOW TO VOTE' MATERIAL BANNED
Australian voters have been blocked from receiving 'how to vote' material from the political parties.

Emergency Supreme Court action for prisoners' vote
Renowned constitutional lawyer, George Williams QC, assisted by Ben Zipser of Selborne Chambers and Joanne Moffit of Kingsford Legal Centre will argue for the right of prisoners to receive voting information in the form of The Australian Prisoners' Election Newspaper. The newspaper has been banned by the prisons commissioner, Mr. Ron Woodham. No explanation has been given.

RE: URGENT - Prisoner enrolment to vote!
Justice Action has been talking to the Australian Electoral Commission over the past three weeks about what steps were being taken to ensure that prisoners were given the opportunity to enrol to vote in the Australian Election on October 9.

Prisoner's right to vote attacked again!
On the eve of the election the Howard government has rushed a new law into the Parliament which will further remove the rights of prisoners to vote.

Howard wants prisoner vote ban
Politicians opposed to a federal government plan to ban all prisoners from voting were soft on crime, Special Minister for State Eric Abetz said.

Govt moves to strip prisoners' voting rights
The Australian Council for Civil Liberties has condemned a Federal Government move to stop prisoners voting. Under current laws, prisoners serving less than five years can vote.

Message of Solidarity: Greens
The Australian corrections system is appalling and rife with abuse of prisoner's rights. The spiralling numbers of those locked up, now over 23,000, is an indictment on a society which purports to be fair and democratic.

Prisoners must get right to vote, says court
UK: The government will be forced to lift a ban on prisoners voting dating back to 1870 after the European court of human rights ruled yesterday it breached a lifer's human rights.

Fighting for Florida: Disenfranchised Florida Felons Struggle to Regain Their Rights US: TALLAHASSEE, Fla. - Gov. Jeb Bush looked out over a roomful of felons appealing to him for something they had lost, and tried to reassure them.

Felons and the Right to Vote One of the greatest achievements of the civil rights struggle was the passage of the Voting Rights Act of 1965, which removed most of the obstacles that kept African Americans away from the ballot box and enabled Americans who did not speak English to vote. But the voting rights movement never reached the last excluded segment of our democracy: our prisoners.

Prisons:

MORE PRISONERS LOCKDOWNS HAVE OFFICERS ON EDGE
NSW POLICE Commissioner Ken Moroney has issued an ultimatum as well, to the lawless youths holding Sydney's streets to ransom?: Learn some respect or face jail?

Tough line on crime fills jails
The tough law-and-order policies of governments around the nation are behind an explosion in the prison population by almost 80 per cent in the past two decades.

LEGAL VISITS AT PARKLEA PRISON
I am a prisoner in NSW and I am currently held in Parklea Prison. I am concerned about what is going on in NSW prisons and this is my story.

Parklea Prison: No calls for six days
The last calls that were made out of Parklea Correctional Complex by my partner, an inmate in remand at Parklea, was on Wednesday 2 February. The phone lines for the inmates have been out of service to this date.

Prison visits in crisis in NSW
The reason I am writing today is to address a difficult situation that my husband and my family are going through. My husband is currently serving a sentence at Lithgow Correctional Centre in NSW.

Prison boom will prove a social bust
Hardened criminals are not filling NSW's prisons - the mentally ill and socially disadvantaged are, writes Eileen Baldry.

The prison system requires assiduous oversight
As NSW Attorney General Bob Debus noted in 1996: "The kinds of complaints which occur in the system may seem trivial to outsiders but in the superheated world of the prison, such issues can produce explosive results."

Crime and Punishment
Mark Findlay argues that the present psychological approach to prison programs is increasing the likelihood of re-offending and the threat to community safety.

Justice Denied In NSW Corrective Services
There used to be a (VJ) or Visiting Justice who would go into the prison and judge any claim or accusation that was made by any prisoner or prison guard. If it were found that a prisoner had offended then punishment was metered out.

Prison guards test positive for drugs
NSW prison visitors banned from using the toilet The visit is only for about one hour and any thing less than that is an insult. If it's proved that a visitor has broken the rules the punishment should apply to them. But collective punishment on all visitors should not be made general when others haven't broken the rules especially if it restricts all visitors from normal human needs like using a toilet.

NSW prison visitors banned from using the toilet
The New South Wales Government has introduced several initiatives to stop contraband getting into prisons they said last Friday. But under the guise of "stricter rules" the department had also introduced banning all visitors including children from using the toilet unless they terminate their visit at any NSW prison after using the toilet.

Watchdogs slaughtered in NSW
On Tuesday the Carr Government reduced transparency and accountability yet again and New South Wales is in danger of becoming entrenched with cronyism and intimidations with the Carr Labor Government that continues to slaughter the watchdogs.

"Sew-in" in Athens to highlight problems faced by sportswear workers

Athens, August 10, 2004: The Play Fair at the Olympics campaign staged an action in Athens on the eve of the opening of the Olympic games in solidarity with sportswear workers worldwide.

Twenty women gathered on an Athens rooftop to mark a silent protest staged by the Play Fair at the Olympics campaign. Play Fair held a "sew-in", featuring "faceless" activists, operating sewing machines against the backdrop of the Acropolis.

The action was staged in order to highlight the appalling working conditions experienced by hundreds of thousands of workers in the sportswear industry. They face punishing work schedules, poverty wages, harassment and discrimination on a daily basis.

Spokespersons from the campaign commented that improvements had been seen in the sportswear sector, but serious problems still exist, and much more needs to be done to ensure workers' right are respected in this global industry. They also announced that the IOC had declined to accept over half a million signatures from campaign supporters in Athens.

To see photos from the stunt Launched on March 4, 2004 by Oxfam, the Clean Clothes Campaign and Global Unions, the Play Fair at the Olympics campaign is one of the largest ever worldwide mobilizations against sweatshops. The rooftop event was part of a wider mobilization in the run up to the games.

Other actions include a regional workers' Olympics in Thailand and a journey made by 27 cyclists from Belgium to Greece in support of the campaign.

The ICFTU represents 148 million workers through its 234 affiliated national trade union centres in 152 countries and territories. ICFTU is also a member of Global Unions

By Stitch Up posted 12 August 04

For more information, please contact the ICFTU Press Department on +32 2 224 0232 or +32 476 621 018.
------------------------------------------
International Confederation of Free Trade Unions(ICFTU)
Boulevard du Roi Albert II 5, B1, B-1210 Brussels, Belgium. For more information please contact ICFTU Press on: +32 (2) 224 0232 - press@icftu.org

Related:

Anti-Olympics Rally Honors Dead Workers
Anti-Olympics protesters gathered in central Athens Tuesday to hold an open-air memorial service for 13 workers killed during round-the-clock construction of venues for the games.

Take crime talk beyond the bars:'lobby group'

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

Related:

Six weeks, six months, six years: inmates have little chance of making fresh start More than 15,500 people are released from NSW prisons each year, twice the number of 20 years ago. But new research shows many ex-prisoners find it impossible to reintegrate into society and, months after release, are worse off than before they went to jail.

Fiona Stanley, the children's crusader
It is all about prevention. As Fiona Stanley sees it, with one in five Australian teenagers experiencing significant mental health problems, there are just not enough treatment services to cope with the demand.

Attempted thong theft costs $560
A man has been fined $500 after appearing in a northern New South Wales court charged with stealing a pair of thongs.

NSW A-G moves to stop criminals and ex-criminals selling stories
From next month criminals or ex-criminals who try to profit (earn a living for paid work, like writing a book etc..) from their crimes in New South Wales will have the proceeds confiscated.

NSW Govt criticised over criminal justice record
Key criminal justice groups have described the New South Wales Government's record on justice issues as a "disappointing performance".

APPOINTMENT OF KLOK IS: 'DECLARATION OF WAR'
The decision of the Carr government to appoint John Jacob Klok as the new Assistant Commissioner for Corrective Services in charge of security represents a statement of contempt to all those concerned about law and justice in NSW.

How NSW Dept of Corrective Services spent $800,000 dollars to rehabilitate a Sydney man sentenced to life for second murder! A spokesperson for Justice Action Mr Pro Grams said, "Well it's your money, how would you like it spent? And what do you think about rehabilitation on behalf of the Department of Corruptive Services?

Prisoners Representatives Excommunicated
Ron Woodham, Commissioner Corrective Services stated "[this Department] does not recognise Justice Action as an advocate on correctional centre issues." He has ordered a ban on all Justice Action material inside the NSW prison system. This resulted from a request for the approval of the latest edition of Framed (the Magazine of Justice Action) to be distributed throughout NSW prisons as has occurred for the past ten years.

Academic devises scheme for low income earners to pay back fines:
A professor at the Australian National University [another one of John Howard's hand picked losers like Peter Saunders the social services head-kicker has come up with a scheme which could see low income earners pay back criminal fines over a period of time.

Dept of Corrective Services: Rotten Ron Woodham on the ropes
This is The Freeedom Of Speech and The Press in a goldfish-bowl! Herr Goebells has spoken. Zieg Heil! (Which means, actually: "aim-for health!" incidentally)Apologies for not making meetings ... my first experiences with Woodham (then a -screw-gestapo-minor-with-a-friendly-dog - AND YOU KNOW WHAT IT MEANS WHEN EVEN HIS DOG DOESN`T LIKE HIM?)

At the Minister's Pleasure The case of Michael Kelly
Michael is caught up in a particularly cruel version of the game of Cat and Mouse. Because he is classified as a forensic patient under the Mental Heath Act of NSW, the Minister for Health is his master, not the Minister for Corrective Services. And the Minister for health will not let him go.

EX-PRISONER UNEMPLOYMENT: SENTENCED FOR LIFE
Name removed by request served time in prison decades ago. Shes still being punished today. According to commonwealth and state legislation, ex-prisoners applying for jobs must declare any conviction that fits into the following categories: less than 10 years old, more than 10 years old but served more than 30 months in prison.

ARE YOU INNOCENT?
The Australian Law Reform Commission had recommended that the Innocence Panel be independent and have the power to investigate alleged miscarriages of justice.

NSW Department of Corrective Services attack right to privacy
Corrective Services Minister Richard Amery has a problem attacking prisoners right to privacy.It seems to us that a civil society is best served when social justice laws are applied to all people regardless of their circumstances. Once government starts making exceptions which disadvantage certain groups and individuals, such laws are meaningless.

Litigants are drowning: in the High Court
There were so many self represented litigants appearing in the High Court that more than half of its registry staff's time was taken up in dealing with them. The "go it alone" litigants have to take on tasks well above their qualified league causing them stress. This growing problem cannot be left unchecked.

Everyone wants to get out of 'jail' but 'Framed' wants life: Rotten Ron on the ropes On 2 May 2002, Justice Action received a faxed letter from Manager of DCS Operations Support Branch saying that, in his view, articles in Framed edition #42 'lack balance and integrity' and he is therefore 'not prepared to recommend this issue of Framed for placement in to correctional centre libraries.' Prisoners and those concerned about prisoner issues have very few sources of information.

Methadone addicts formed within: 'NSW Prisons'
The New South Wales Opposition has accused the State Government of turning jailed heroin users into Methadone addicts.

Murder charge first for DNA data bank link, but not the same as solving the murder Mass DNA testing of prisoners has [allegedly] led to the first NSW case of a person being charged with a previously unsolved murder as a result of a controversial gene-matching data bank.

Medical Records: Alex Mitchell's lost world
Perhaps we can get your medical report and spew it around publicly so you can see how it feels. But surely we do not have to go that far. And of course we are law-abiding citizens and I should think it would be enough to remind you of your ethics to report at all.

Prisoners can prove innocence for $20?
Les Kennedy Daily Telegraph reported today that" Prisoners who believe that DNA will prove they were wrongly convicted will have the chance to prove their innocence for a mere $20 administration fee. The move comes 20 months after NSW inmates were asked to provide DNA for comparison with a databank of DNA from unsolved crime scenes for possible convictions.

NSW opposition pledges review of detention laws
A spokesperson for Justice Action Ms Anal Advice said " NSW Prisons are a sex offence if you have been raped, bashed and squatted down to be strip searched. People should be diverted from going there at all material times".

Civil libertarians condemn planned changes to prisoners' privacy rights The New South Wales Government is using a recent case involving [framed] serial killer Ivan Milat to justify its decision to remove the privacy rights of prisoners. But really just another attack on Ivan Milat from Parliament House.

RESTORING TRUE JUSTICE:
Australian prisons are fast becoming the new asylums of the third millennium. The prison industry is booming, while Australia spends far less on mental health services than similar countries.

The punishment: Is the 'crime'
The punishment is the crime according to retired chief Justice of the Family Court of Australia Justice Alistair Nicholson. "Smacking a child ought to be seen as assault".

Mr. & Mrs. Mandatory Sentencing
Well congratulations to the bride and groom. Could you please be upstanding and raise your glasses for Mr. And Mrs. Mandatory.

Just wipe your arse on Ivan again Minister?
Mr Amery Minister for Corrective services has a problem with finding a toilet roll to wipe his bottom. Justice Action is appalled at the attacks by Amery and others in parliament on Ivan Milat's right to privacy and their attacks on the Privacy Commissioner and his office.

NSW prisons - primary industry bailed up!
In many quiet regional centres around NSW there is a new primary industry shaping up. It has something to do with Bail but not with bales. The minister for Agriculture Richard Amery who also has the prisons portfolio is now committed to farming prisoners.

NSW Parliament Bitter Pills To Swallow?
One delusion pill: So people who investigate their own mistakes make sure there was no mistake or someone else made the mistake. Perhaps you're not biased and you will be honest about it.

The Government is likely to abolish the Inspector General of Corrective Services position The Mulawa inspection report recommendations below strictly illustrate how important he is.

Black Nexus
The Separation of Powers Doctrine is nowcontaminated witharangeofcolours, now leaving us with a black shirt on a once blue bridge that crossed that thin blue line. The 'Amery and Woodham show'.

Prison Mind Games-Do they exist?
Directives are given inside the prison system that are not consistent with the law in NSW. And not in the good interests of the health and well being of the prisoners.

Chronology - A History of Australian Prisons
[Allegedly:] The events that have shaped NSW prisons - from convict days through royal commissions, to the Supermax of today. [I say allegedly because no one should trust Four Corners [Walls], why? Because they spill out the propaganda of the day for the Government, whether it be wrong or right. A government that lies and has no remorse about it.]