"Can we have your guitar?"

We made it! It was a very intense time, both physically (13 events in four days, plus 10+ hour travel in between) and in terms of ministry. Here is a post Andrew wrote for the official tour blog, which you can find at www.hillsong.co.za/about/africa-tour-blog. Feel free to check out some of the other stories there!

Over the course of the Hillsong Africa Worship Tour we had the privilege of visiting five different prisons. Whenever we finished our visit to a prison, this was inevitably the last question we would be asked. This is not significant in itself— prisoners often ask for gifts and favours, and it wasa beautiful guitar. What made the question striking was everything the prisoners were not asking.

Many of the prisons we visited did not provide beds or uniforms for their inmates. Some did not even have safe access to water. One facility was built in 1897, and it did not look like much had changed since then. I will always remember the menu taped to the main gate of one prison. If your family was willing to pay, you could get some actual food added to the small dish of maize-meal. Malnutrition and disease are commonplace, and downright starvation was a continuous lurking possibility. Why ask for a guitar?

(Afternoon Worship Festival in Livingstone, Zambia)

The inmates are intelligent enough to realize they would have more chance of getting some food or money from their visitors than their only musical instrument, but they didn’t care. In a bizarre way they were responding to a hunger that transcended even the most basic human needs. These prisoners did not have food, shelter or even physical safety, and yet all they asked for was music. As one old prisoner said to me, “music is the language of the soul.” Maybe they were so tired of scraping together an existence like animals, that they were desperate for a reminder that there was something more to life than mere survival.

If a prisoner is willing to overlook even basic necessities to nourish his soul, maybe I need to be assessing whether all the luxuries and entertainment in my life are worth the distraction...

(The crowd in Livingstone -- several thousand strong)

Prison Ministry and Missions

Everything comes full circle!

The Andrew Murray Centre began in the late '80s as a missions training program. Everything took a dramatic turn when the leadership decided to bring this training into an unlikely setting—prison. However, prison ministry was always a means to an end. The inmates we served were already leaders… it was just a question of whether they would be leaders for the church or leaders for the gang. Behind the scars and the tattoos, we saw a new generation of missionaries who could reach into dangerous subcultures where American missionaries would have no voice.

Now our mission’s heritage is combined with the prison ministry as never before. Anne and I need to be at the airport at 4:30 tomorrow morning to leave for a nine day tour of Zambia, Botswana and Zimbabwe. The trip is organized by Hillsong Church, and they will be performing huge worship concerts in four major cities.

The Andrew Murray Centre has been asked to coordinate a series of prison visits in each of these countries. We used to do missions trips before starting local work in prisons… now this same prison ministry is taking us international again!

Here is a rough itinerary:

- Livingstone, Zambia – Saturday October 8^th

- Francistown, Botswana – Tuesday October 11^th

-Bulawayo, Zimbabwe – Wednesday October 12^th

- Harare, Zimbabwe – Friday October 14^th

A special prayer request is the prison in Livingstone. Through an administrative mistake I was unable to obtain security clearance for the team. Short of a miracle, we will not be going in there.

Perhaps the most striking aspect of this journey is that I am carrying fifteen letters from South African prisoners. They are praying for this mission, and they wanted to encourage their brothers behind bars. I will share some of these letters with you in the coming weeks.

Thank you for praying with us!

Restorative Justice: How can this make sense...

This happened weeks ago, and I am still struggling to make sense of it. I asked for your prayers concerning a Restorative Justice program, and it is clear that you responded because it was one of the most intense weeks of my life.

I was a little disappointed at the beginning of the week, because most of the inmates who were attending the course were already believers. Sometimes "christian" inmates will be more excited about parading their knowledge of the Bible than about actually taking responsibility for what they have done. Heck... I guess it's kind of like church sometimes! I have heard men calmly walk away from shocking crimes because "God has forgiven me"

I could not have been more wrong. Usually the inmates I work with are incredibly guarded--almost paranoid--but these men let down their defenses and really took the discussion seriously. Restorative Justice challenges the men to understand the impact that their actions have had upon their families and communities, and these guys got it.

The highlight of the course was when one young man came up to me after a discussion: "Andrew... I feel sick. I feel like I could vomit in my spirit." He went on to explain that he was going to be released from prison in a matter of months. Unlike many of the men I serve, his family was actually looking forward to his return. He also had a young daughter that he could not stop talking about throughout the course.

His problem, was that he now believed he could not do it. In our conversation, he confessed to a murder he had committed on the outside that nobody had even charged him of. After sitting on our program, he realized that this woman's family was still hurting for the crime he had committed years ago, and they deserved answers that only he could give. He had to take responsibility, even if it meant an additional sentence.

I was shocked. Honestly I had to warn him to be careful what he shared with me, because once he started down this road it could have very serious consequences. This young man explained that he could never be an effective father to his daughter if he kept this secret.

I have never seen anything like it... It was living proof of the passage in Matthew 10 where Jesus states "those who lose their life for my sake will find it." It is a sacrifice that can only make sense under grace. This man understood that the most dangerous prisons are not built of concrete and razor wire, and he needed speak the truth before he could ever be free.

I don't know what you guys were praying for, but God was present in that prison hall in a way I have not experienced before. It was humbling to be a part of such intense healing.

I will soon be meeting with the Inspecting Judge of the Department of Correctional Services, and I would appreciate your prayers again as we take this case forward. This young prisoner has already ministered to me, and I will consider it an honor to walk with him as he takes responsibility for the past and claims whatever future God has in store.

Call for prayer

This will be an intense week…

Monday June 13^th begins our Restorative Justice program in Drakenstein Correctional Centre. We are going to be working with twenty-four juvenile (late teens, early twenties) prisoners. The goal of the program is to challenge these young men to take responsibility for what they have done, and begin the long journey of healing the shattered relationships in their lives. We will spend all day together for the next five days, and then everything comes to a head on Saturday when we bring their families into the prison.

(Andrew teaching a previous Restorative Justice class)

I have a dynamic team of twelve facilitators who will be supporting this project. While I will be doing much of the teaching, they have the more important job of running the small-group discussions at the tables. We are a diverse crew… American, Afrikaans, Scottish, Xhosa and even a German! We come from all different backgrounds ranging from Californian college students to South African ex-prisoners. Honestly, I feel God’s sense of humor in this! How is it that a random white American guy is supposed to reach into the lives of African prisoners? By any natural comparison, we come from different worlds that have nothing in common.

This is why you are so important! I do not want to fight my way through this week through my own charisma or intelligence (You can insert whatever joke you want here!). These young men have deeply alienated themselves from their families and from their society, and it will take a divine act to heal these relationships. Pray with us! I include a few prayer requests from my team so you get a sense for our hopes and fears.

-Pray this would not just be another program for the inmates. They need a heart transformation, not just a certificate!

-Pray for the inmates’ families – Saturday will be an intense experience for them, and we want them to be prepared spiritually and emotionally.

- Pray for concentration and focus for our students and volunteers. Prison is a very distracting place. It’s always noisy!

- Pray for clear communication with the authorities – prison is the ultimate bureaucracy.

-Pray for safety from ridicule and persecution for inmates once it is known that they have gone through this process. It’s difficult to leave the gangs, or even show evidence of a changed life.

-Pray for teachable spirits for both the facilitators and the inmates.

- Pray for unity among our team. This is often an area where we experience spiritual attack during significant times like this.

- Pray for smooth execution of all the logistics – venues, food, transportation, communication with families, etc.

- Pray that God’s justice would transcend cultural differences.

Thank you for your support! As the week progresses we will give you more information, but at the moment we go forward with confidence that can only come from an understanding of 1 John 5:5

“Who is it that overcomes the world? Only he who believes that Jesus is the Son of God.”

"Strange Company"

What could a man from the Congo, an Afrikaaner, a couple from Australia, a Xhosa, a German, a couple from America and a man from Switzerland all have in common?

Just another Thursday afternoon in prison ministry!

The Andrew Murray Centre is called to be a bridge between the churches and the prisons, and that mission brings a strange crew of people together in a single purpose. We are a non-denominational Christian ministry with a leadership team that draws from the full spectrum of South Africa’s racial diversity. Despite coming from radically different backgrounds, we are united in our mission:

“Raising up a new generation of Christian leaders from South Africa’s prisons—a discipleship journey that will return the churches to those they have forgotten and rejoin the prisoners with those they have harmed.

It is strange, but prison ministry is remarkably similar across social and racial barriers. On the surface a Latino gangster from Southern California would have literally nothing in common with a Xhosa ganster from Mbekweni. Unfortunately prison acts like a sociological meat-grinder! No matter where these men come from they are subjected to a similar range of isolation, bitterness, prejudice, racism and violent trauma. It is impossible to predict all the factors that will bring someone to prison, but it is easy to predict the challenges they will face as they try to make it out of the system. It’s bittersweet, but this is one of the reasons I have been successful in ministry here—even as a foreigner. My work in South Africa is very similar to prison ministry that I began doing in the States back in 2001.

The challenges we face in prison ministry cut across cultural lines, and our ministry team also defies cultural expectations. However, there is something even more important that ties everything together. The God we serve has the same loving character -- whether it is a "C-Max" in Johannesburg or death row in Texas.

A Guitar

The boys I meet in B5 take pleasure in simple things.

I'm not talking about life coach philosophy here. They are not “downsizing” their lives – rather, the things I would consider “simple” and beneath my enjoyment are often luxuries for them.

Consider this example. One of the most surprising things about working in B5 has been watching the boys color. Yes, color, as in using crayons or markers to fill in picture sheets with Bible verses on them. The kind of activity you would normally use with kids no older than 7. Don't get me wrong and think that this is a reflection on their mental capabilities. These boys are smart despite the fact that many have had little or no formal education. The key word here is opportunities. Coloring sheets might not seem like much of a creative outlet to most people, but in an environment so devoid of creativity in every area we take for granted (décor, clothing, food, hobbies, even time management), any opportunity is a good one.

This tendency plays out in another area of my involvement in B5: music. When I was making plans to come to Cape Town, I realized right away that I could not bring any of my instruments without paying a small fortune in either extra baggage fees or shipping, and another small fortune in insurance against potential damages for either of those two options! I decided to wait until I arrived and see if I could borrow or rent an instrument instead. I have managed to get a violin so far that should serve me well, and just today a fellow prison volunteer brought in a guitar I can use.

I don't think this guitar will “serve me well”. For starters, it's missing a string! That can be remedied, of course, but what can't change is that it's a classical guitar -- very different from what I normally play (wider and thicker neck, nylon strings, etc.). It's something for now, but I'm definitely going to look for something else.

The boys love it, though. To them, it just makes music – something they don't experience very often. I can also let them hold it and play it without worrying about damage! Having someone care enough to bring an instrument into prison and play for them means so much, whether it has the proper number of strings or not. If I find a better guitar in the coming weeks, will they even notice the difference?

Joseph in Prison

The Bible is a book with unique cultural relevance.  As I step into the bizarre world of a South African prison, I realize that the inmates I am going to visit have more in common with the harsh realities of the Old Testament than my middle-class white America.

 

Today was my second time going into the B5 Youth Centre at Pollsmoor while Andrew attended follow-up sessions for the Restorative Justice course in the men's prison.  The program I have been working with is a Bible study/life skills class taught by a fellow volunteer named Hillary.  Hillary's husband was involved in the Restorative Justice course that Andrew joined a few weeks ago, and we have become close friends. 

 

Stories are the best teacher, which is why the “life skills” component flows so naturally from the Bible stories.  Andrew would call it "Narrative Curriculum," but for anybody who has ever tried to entertain twenty teenage boys, it's just plain survival!  What would be the point of studying the Bible for these boys if it didn't have a practical connection to their lives?  To make the connection even closer, Hillary has started a series on people in the Bible who were in prison.  First up is Joseph.

 

As you can no doubt imagine (and probably some of you know firsthand!), there are plenty of challenges associated with leading a Bible class of 20-25 teenage boys who do not share your native language.  Added to that, there is very little consistency in attendance from week to week – the class is voluntary, of course, but even more important, the boys are awaiting trial.  That means that although some are in B5 for very long periods of time, others could be gone the next day.  Every week Hillary introduces herself at the beginning of the class, and if there is a multi-part story, the whole thing must be retold from the beginning.

 

Fortunately, there could hardly be a better topic than Joseph.  The story is real to these boys in ways that it never has been for me.  For instance, I never considered the culpability of Jacob before.  The boys in my discussion group understood the consequences of jealousy among brothers, and they were adamant that fathers should not show favoritism.  They have seen those situations end in bloodshed.  They have a cultural background that connects with the Bible better than anything I have experienced.  The harshness of the world many of them have lived in comes to the fore when we discussed the role of Reuben in trying to save Joseph from the other brothers.  When asked if they had ever tried to help someone and failed, one boy told of seeing his friend stabbed and going to help but having him die in his arms. 

I don't feel like the teacher here.  I may have been involved in bringing an interesting story into the drudgery of prison life, but in many ways Joseph was already here.  Maybe part of what makes the Bible so valuable is that in its pages we find parallels to all the moral complexity and pain of our own lives.  For a group of young men who literally feel "trapped" by their own experiences, this is a gift that I have had the privilege to share.  

 

B5 (or Anne in Prison, Part II)

It took me a few days to process my experience in the Restorative Justice class, but almost before I knew it I was presented with another opportunity to visit Pollsmoor.  A friend from church whose husband was a facilitator for the RJ course in Medium B that Andrew joined does a program for boys in B5, the juvenile facility, every Thursday.  She asked if I would like to join her, and in spite of myself I agreed.

 

I shouldn't say “in spite of myself” because I did want to go...I just wasn't excited for it yet.  As I mentioned earlier when I went to the Restorative Justice class, I didn't feel any fear.  Still, the amount of unease, uncertainty and feeling unsure of yourself is practically unmatched in any other context! 

 

The staff and volunteers of Hope Prison Ministry meet for devotions and prayer each morning before dispersing to the offices or the different prisons.  Hope is a fairly large organization, about 300 volunteers, so pretty much any day of the week individuals or groups are going into the different facilities to lead Bible studies, teach life skills classes, do follow-up from previous RJ courses, meet for individual counseling with inmates, etc.  It is encouraging to look around and see how many others are making this work a priority, and to meet such humble, strong and faithful servants of God.

 

B5 looked and felt more like a prison to me than Medium B, but mostly because I walked through cell blocks and the prison yard on my way in rather than just hallways.  What was most surprising, though, was how young the boys were.  They range in age from about 14 to 19, and in some ways they have experienced far more in life than their counterparts in an American high school, but in other ways they seem even younger.  From what I have been told, there used to be a lot of tough kids in B5 who were already heavily involved in gangs, but at least the ones who came to our program were not hardened yet.  Their emotions were not too far below the surface, and they craved activity, attention and love.  I don't know yet if I will start coming to B5 regularly, but either way I know that I need God to give me more love for these boys, and others who are broken and outcast.

36 Hours With Hope

That was the headline from the story that was written about our Restorative Justice program.  The reporter was an observer all week, and she won an award for her portrayal.  I would give you a copy of her article except that it was in Afrikaans!  The experience was intense.  I had never been involved in anything quite like it.  I described the outline of the program in my last post, but here are a few reflections.  I really still need to process it all, but here is the beginning. 

 

The week was a powerful blend of heartbreak and hope.  On the one hand, it was disturbing to be sitting at a table with two rapists and a few armed robbers, but on the other it was encouraging that they were willing to speak openly about their guilt.  The few times when a man did make excuses for his crime, other prisoners were quick to hold him to account.  Nobody listens to prisoners, so even the fact that we were there became a humanizing influence.  We sat at tables with tablecloths and shared a meal together.  The men were open with their stories because they knew we respected them as individuals. 

 

The transition is definitely a slow one.  After we showed the prisoners some graphic pictures from a crime scene, there was a discussion about how all different kinds of crime can lead to great pain.  One man experienced a “break-through” when he realized it does not make sense to mutilate a body after you have killed it.  He was proud of himself!  Many prisoners have lived such a traumatizing life that they have lost the moral vocabulary to assess their actions.  The necessary psychological defenses they have built against the abuse in their own lives have led them to a very dark place.  While it is striking how much work remains to be done in prison, amazing transformation is possible.  We had several prisoners who realized that there would be no chance of healing unless they were honest about their crime to their families.  The “Family Reconciliation Service” we held on Saturday gave them a chance to do it!

 

I initially was on the course only as an observer, but as I built a rapport with the prisoners and the volunteers from Hope Prison Ministry, they made me a table facilitator.  The prisoners were fascinated with my studies, and I was quickly dubbed the “American Criminologist.”  I started something of a stir when I described a prisoner I had worked with in the States.  He had “back-slid” because of unconfessed sin in his life, and the gist of my story was that “what you keep, you also carry.”  I didn't think much of it at the time, but prisoners quickly began quoting it and arguing over it.  There is such an obsession with secret crime in this place, that I guess I hit a raw nerve.  They liked me enough that they asked me to run one of their follow-up sessions on forgiveness. 

 

Stay tuned for more thoughts on Restorative Justice!  

Family Day

From Anne:

 The final day of a Restorative Justice class is a reconciliation service between inmates and their families.  Facilitators for the class contact relatives with whom the men have indicated they need to reestablish a relationship, and these family members are invited to the prison to take part.  Andrew invited me to attend this meeting, and it sounded like a great opportunity to observe somewhat inconspicuously.

Today was actually my first time inside a prison.  I didn't know what to expect, so I was more or less ready for anything.  The first half hour or more was spent in various security measures – entering the front gate (and having the trunk of our car searched), going in one entrance, then being asked to use a different entrance, then going through a metal detector, etc.  It was all a bit chaotic because there were so many visitors – probably around 75 family members, all being allowed into the prison without prior security clearance and with minimal searching or scrutiny.  The degree of support this course has from the prison administration and staff is quite remarkable.  Most prisons would be very hesitant to allow an event like this, and certainly put off by the extra work all those visitors create for them.

 The program started with an introduction to the content of the Restorative Justice course aimed at relatives and visitors.  Then the men and their relatives came forward one by one and spoke.  Some talked to their relatives about past hurts.  Many apologized for not being able to help their families with time, money and emotional support. 

Two things surprised me.  The first was how many of the family members were so quick to forgive.  Several said that they had forgiven a long time ago, and that brought a very emotional response from the inmates.  Andrew mentioned that earlier in the week many of the men were feeling anxious, unsure if any family member would come for them.  In the end all but one did, and despite a whole range of difficult emotions at work in such an intense situation, no one that I could see left angry.

 

The second thing that surprised me was the importance of confession for these men.  During the service some of them admitted for the first time what they had actually done.  Lying seems a necessity when defending themselves in court, for holding onto the support of family, and even in shielding themselves from the reality of their actions.  Blaming other people or circumstances is also a way that they avoid facing their crimes.  The image of one young man sticks in my mind – he stood up and said, “I don't know why I did the things that I did.  But I can't point the finger at anyone but myself.”

 

Except for all the barbed wire, metal doors, guards, orange jumpsuits and tattoos, we could have been in any concrete-block church building.  Okay, so all those things are pretty different.  But one of the most surprising things for me during this visit was how “normal” it felt.  It was not an intense emotional experience, I didn't feel frightened at any point, and I was strangely detached from it in many ways.  I think this is because I have very little firsthand experience to contextualize what I saw.  I had never been in a prison before, I have not been a crime victim nor has anyone in my family or friend circle that I know, I have never faced the kind of choices these men have faced or even seen the kind of neighborhood they had to grow up in.  Yet as I reflect on the day, I am grateful for the opportunity to hear these stories and see a kind of reconciliation that is rarely to be found.  I hope and pray that the changes these men spoke of with such desire will become reality for them, their families, and their communities.

Restorative Justice: Andrew (finally) Goes to Prison

Restorative Justice is really another thing that makes studying prison rehabilitation unique in South Africa.  Other countries (like New Zealand and Canada) have implemented similar programs, but it is only in South Africa that restorative justice is part of the national identity.  Indulge me in a bit of history:  In the late nineties, the country was faced with the challenge of integrating hostile combatants into a new democratic government.  This willingness to step away from punitive retribution is what made Nelson Mandela's leadership so unique, and is definitely what saved South Africa from a horrible civil war.  On a philosophical level, restorative justice is the only option for the penal system where both the victim and the offender get a positive outcome.

 

As for its practical ramifications in prison, Hope Prison Ministry is currently running the most unique program of restorative justice I have ever seen.  I have worked in prisons for seven years, but I have not seen a program like this.  Basically Hope's version takes about fifty inmates through an intense, week-long session where they examine the victims of crime as a ripple effect—starting with their victim but ultimately radiating out to their own families and even themselves.  Through small group discussions and presentations by victims and ex-offenders, the men learn a new moral vocabulary for thinking about their lives.  There is follow-up for an additional six months including counseling every Monday and a group session every Thursday.

 

Restorative Justice includes the vital element that is missing from almost every rehabilitation program I have seen—community involvement.  Throughout the week, there are phone calls (on speaker phone) where the inmates can hear their family members describe just how painful it is to have them locked behind bars.  For many of the men who have had limited contact with their families, this is an intense and revealing experience.  The culmination of the week involves a similar experience.  The men identify a family member whom they have harmed in some way, and invite them to a service on Saturday where they can publicly apologize.  I have never heard of a program that involves the families of prisoners in such a purposeful way.

 

I found out about this course in a surprising way.  I am obviously living in Cape Town at the moment, but all of my contacts in prison are more than an hour away (through deadly South African traffic).  I knew there was a huge prison in Cape Town, but it is difficult to arrange for security without knowing somebody working inside.  All this changed when I visited Christ Church in Kenilworth.  I believe there is only one person in the entire church who works in prison, but I just happened to be connected to her within ten minutes of walking through the door.  As it turns out, they were starting a Restorative Justice course the next day, and they were able to get security clearance.  “Coincidences,”  maybe not...

 

Need a Summer Internship?

If your interests are in any of the following:

 

Social Work, Criminology

Law, Orphans, Adventure

Travel, Counseling

Psychology, Ministry

Education, Sociology

 

Look no further!  Here in South Africa, we have the honor of working with two excellent organizations.  This is definitely a shameless plug, but mostly we just want to describe some of the people we work with. 

 

First, the Andrew Murray Centre:  This organization is based out of an old missionary training school that Andrew Murray (a hard-core Scottish theologian) built in the 1800's.  The goal was to provide housing and education for students who would not be able to accompany their parents on dangerous missions north into Africa.  David Bliss purchased the center for his base of operations, but maintained its focus on South Africa's youth.  The Andrew Murray Centre takes a residential approach to prison ministry, and many of the team members have lived in the building over the years.  Recently he has begun a leadership training program for orphans coming out of prison.  In all seriousness, this is why I am currently in South Africa.  I spent a summer working for these guys in 2003, and at the time it was both the most exciting and meaningful thing I had done.  Needless to say, I was scheming about how to return to South Africa ever since, which leads me to:

 

Hope Prison Ministry:  The AMC is involved in about ten different prisons, but they are all far away from Cape Town.  Pollsmoor Prison is really six different prisons in one, and Hope Prison Ministry is turning it upside-down!  They have an incredible variety of services ranging from meeting with juveniles who have just been incarcerated to running counseling sessions in maximum security.  I have recently become involved in their restorative justice program, and this has transformed the way I think about working with prisoners. 

 

Through this blog, as we describe our experiences, I hope you get a brief taste of two organizations that are special to us.  In all seriousness, there would be opportunities if you ever wanted to spend a summer working with prisoners and parolees.  Getting here will be expensive, but room and board will practically be free!  It's dangerous though...  That is what I did in 2003, and the next thing you know you will have returned for a longer stint!

"Why South Africa?"

People are often shocked that I would want to come to South Africa to study.  Isn't America supposed to have all the answers?  Unfortunately, I have experienced this reaction in both countries.  There are several unique reasons to study prisons in South Africa.  Even more importantly, there are lessons to be learned in South African prisons that are desperately needed in the States.  Ultimately this stuff will be the focus of my Masters thesis, but here are a few highlight:  Sorry if there are no clever anecdotes about surfing, but it's my blog so I can inflict socio-political ramblings at will!   

 

n  Post-Apartheid Transition:  Prisons are always the last thing to change in a society.  One reason is that prison doesn't tend to attract the progressive, “change the world” sort of employee.  Another is, “why bother?”  If society has a very narrow view of prisons as a warehouse for undesirables, the basic technique for this type of social control has been in place forever.  Guards have been hitting prisoners with sticks since the beginning of time.  Why change a winning formula? 

In all seriousness, however, there is no country that has seen its prison system undergo such a dynamic, rapid transition as in South Africa.  Practically overnight they saw an institution stripped of its purpose (political control by a white minority) and most of it's administration (white bureaucrats).  The whole designation of a “Maximum Security Prison” was now moot, because these had been reserved for political prisoners.  Such a radical transition creates quite a strain on the system, but it makes for a fascinating place to study!

 

n  Willingness to Question:  One of the many advantages to flow from this transition is a willingness to question what prisons are for.  Prisons are designed to fly below the public radar, so this is a rare thing.  Especially in the States, politicians keep funneling money into the prison system without ever assessing what it is good for.  This is incredible, considering 80% of the prisoners who get out of jail are reincarcerated.  If any other aspect of society failed 80% of the time, we would at least have a conversation about it.  In South Africa, this conversation is actually happening.  It might even restore my faith in government. 

 

n  Innovation:  Many prison systems throw together the occasional committee to study various challenges in the penal system, but this is half-hearted at best.  In South Africa, innovation is happening at breakneck speed.  It's a matter of survival!  Granted, some of this innovation takes the form of corruption, but the Department of Correctional Services has been forced to think creatively by nature of the extreme over-crowding and lack of resources.  Western prisons with lush operating budgets just don't have the same incentive!

 

n  Community Involvement:  Many of South Africa's current leaders spent a significant amount of time in prison.  Contrast this with the States, where many of our leaders won office by frightening the middle class with the spectre of black crime!  This has led some South Africans to be less quick to buy into the stigma of prison.  As a result, there is a stronger bond between community organizations and the prison system.  The involvement of NGO's and charities in prison is by no means unique.  What sets South Africa apart is that the government is excited about this!  In the States, volunteers—and rehabilitation programs in general—are viewed as a nuisance.