Interview: Nicolas, volunteer from France

What are your opinions on the current prison system in your country?

I have never been in a prison in France. So what I know about the prison system comes from documentaries, films, articles.

In my country, even if there is on the last years attemps of improvement and rare alternative projects, the carceral system suffers of a lot of problems.

In a jumble, I heard from journalists and professionals working in prison about insalubrity, overpopulation, violence, heatly and hygiene problems, life conditions at the limit of Human Right violation (in the “country of Human Rights”... !?).

All I heard about prisons in France talks about overpopulation. It's seems like an obligation to put people in jail but there is not enough place. Some prisons in 2013 reached the point of 200% of overpopulation.

There is different kind of prisons : one where the prisonners are in individual cell, and other which the name can be traduced as “Remand center”. These centers are the more problematics. They are supposed to host people waiting for their judgement (who haven't been admited guilty... but are in jail) and people with a sentence inferior at one year. But since some years, because of the lake of places, there are also people with sentence superior at one year. There, for a cell of three people, at worst can be seven people ! The commun answer/solution seems to be only to build new places, that's why some people call the french prison system “Factory of offenders” : the more they build new places, the more there are prisonners.

Now prisons are also an asylum for people with mental problems. It's becoming a mix between prison and psychiatric institutions, but without anyone able to deal with people with mental disabilities. So the only way found to avoid problems is a chemical straitjacket : to give pills to calm the people. The same mechanism seems to be used for the people who aparently don't have mental problem : if they go to the infirmary complaining about their dificulty to live in this oppressing area, it's commum that they come back with antidepressors for the days and sleeping pills for the night. Not the best way to society inclusion one time their sentence will be done.

Even if one of the mission is in theory to “reintroduce” people in the society, there is a big lake also on this politic. The link supposed to be  done with the society should be more present. Prisonners can access to trainings, workshop, work. But they cannot be really provide for they family and for themselves when they will go out. In some places they are like exploited, working for big company of parfumes which earn a lot of money, but them earn almost nothing working hard.

I think the system itself is perverse and that money and research should be focused on alternatives of this carceral and closed system. In France, as an example, for teenagers and young adults, an organisation (Seuil) propose to young offenders to do a long walk during three months with an accompanist, to think while walking, reach daily objectives, improve self-estim, and plan another future. I would like to work in this way.

How do you feel about working with the young offenders?

I feel more useful as a social worker when I work with young offenders. I thing I can bring them news visions of life, give them the opportunity to act, share, do together and by themselves.

In France, majority of my work took place in a context of rupture with what young people live in their daily life. For example, organise a workcamp in a farm around ecological ways of building, or work and live in wild nature (especially in mountain), meeting local people like agricultors, shepherds, … The result of the work was highlighted beeing use by local communities.

The main axis of the work was to “learning by doing and experimenting”.

What do you hope to accomplish as an educator/ facilitator / social worker in prison?

I hope to give to the participants of the activities possibilities to open ways of thinking, acting and living.

The main idea of the work there is to give them possibilities of express themselves and to listen the others, to do together in cooperation, to understand better their own style of learning, to recognize their abilities and put it in practice, to do a link with the “outside”.

I would like to work with them about intercultural learning and non-violent conflict management.

Also it could be great if the activities could help them to forget a while where they are...

What techniques do you use in a crisis time ?

I use techniques of non-violent management of conflicts. It means to give to possibility to each part to express themselves about what is the problem for him and why, analysing the problem. Then, debate about the alternatives which can satisfaste each part and put it in practice.

It can be different in situation of violence, where I usually separate the people to talk with them individualy before to try another meeting and find other to do together.