Everybody tends to think their situation is the worst, and I’m not going to start some competition. But even in the best of times (whenever those were), one tends not to think about prisons and their residents unless there is some special reason. There’s a reason now — it’s the virus, and I don’t mean only the risk of contagion in crowded quarters, which has already been recognized as a huge danger.
No, it was when I heard that quarantine in the prisons entailed cutting off family visits that I began to pay attention. Seen from the outside, of course it makes total sense. But that was pushing the prisoners just too far. There were violent revolts in prisons around the country, with some victims. Then a few prisoners started writing.
On Saturday, March 21 the Gazzettino published a long open letter that the inmates of three prisons — in Venice, Padova and Vicenza — sent to the President of the Republic, the Prime Minister, and Pope Francis.
Slightly shortened and translated by me:
“Like everyone in the outside world, we are very worried about this Coronavirus now classified as a pandemic, that involves everybody without distinction and that is inevitably changing everybody’s life…..
As is natural, we who are among the “last” of society are feeling anguish about those outside these walls, just as they are feeling it about us.
The conditions in which we’re living are difficult, in some cases impossible (note: overcrowding is a national scandal). Someone could say that in the Veneto, all things considered, the situation isn’t the worst (but we can assure you that this would be a war between the poor), just as someone could say that we deserve prison.
For the great majority, that’s true, but we deserve punishment, not torture. Our liberty has to be removed, but not dignity, the right to health, the right to live. We respect the restrictions imposed on us, but we don’t accept all of them. For example, some measures that have been taken in light of the emergency, intended to contain the virus, such as the suspension of family visits, the activities of volunteers and their associations, the “reward” permissions and the activities of the officials (guards).
We are struggling, Mr. President and Your Holiness, to understand the goodness of these choices. We’d like for you to understand how dramatic these choices are for us. A visit, even if only one hour a week, a word of comfort from a volunteer, some activity even if only intermittent, are little things that keep us alive. Maybe so much distress wouldn’t have been so violently shown if the decisions had been communicated to the prisoners keeping in mind the pain that they would have caused and immediately giving, at the same time, the possibility to telephone every day, and to talk via Skype more often…..
We are making this appeal for all incarcerated people in Italy (and soon this problem will be experienced in other European countries and the world), but we permit ourselves to make it also for the personnel of the prison administration, first of all the agents. Today we all have to be united to fight the same thing, not between ourselves. The game of cops and robbers doesn’t matter anymore, here we are playing with each person’s life.
The “merit” that this “damned virus” might have is, on one hand, whether we want to or not, it puts us all on the same level because we all need each other, and of collaboration…The other is that it imposes on us a serious reflection, a real question on the meaning of life, of the life of each one of us, even the most derelict.
This is why it was needed immediately, though it’s never too late, a more human attention to we 61,000 prisoners and our families, and also for the nearly 45,000 persons and their families who are involved in the management of the 189 prisons….
With this letter we want to express our closeness to all the categories that despite everything and with all the difficulties of the case continue to guarantee assistance, medical care, security and control. We want to thank all the volunteers, their absence has made us understand how precious they are and how badly we treat them sometimes.
We want to thank especially our angels of health: to doctors and nurses goes a symbolic but sincere hug and praise for their professionalism and humanity. We look at their actions with profound emotion.
We also feel the need to be close to all the families who have lost someone dear, we here in prison know too well what it means to lose a loved one (mother, father, wife, sons, brothers…) without being able to be near them and for many of us without even being able to attend their funeral.
In all the prisons in different ways we all are trying to help however we can. Two examples: From the prison in Venice the inmates held a meeting and wrote a letter to make their voice heard in sign of solidarity, communicating that they have collected 1 euro per prisoner for the Intensive Care Unit of the hospital dell’Angelo in Mestre (70 contributions totaled 110 euros/$119.08).
At the prison “Due Palazzi” of Padova among many activities one in particular has to do with the world of health. The work group, despite the difficulties, fear and worry, continue to make their small contribution furnishing the CUP service (appointment reservations for the hospital in Padova and Mestre). You can’t imagine what it means to be able to make our contribution in a moment like this — it makes us feel alive!
We’re not looking for praise or thanks, we’re proud of our little contribution that we make with patience and dedication to people who are vulnerable in this moment as never before.
Our families are very worried about us, just as we are worried about them. The prisons aren’t immune from danger, on the contrary, they’re particularly vulnerable considering the condition they’re in. In this regard we ask how the contagion is going to be dealt with, considering the overcrowding and the same structures that don’t permit the essential standards of security.
We’re not a little worried about the circular put out by the chief of DAP (Department of Prisons): The personnel of the Penitentiary Police who are working in prisons must continue to work even if they’ve had contact with infected persons, because they are “essential public workers,” and so must “guarantee…the operation of the activities of the penal institutions” and therefore “safeguard the order and security of the public collective.” It seems to us like a provocation in bad taste!
We have among us people with grave pathologies such as diabetics, people with heart disease, invalids, people with respiratory problems, especially the elderly, and many, many drug addicts, persons with serious depression and psychiatric pathologies — if you’ll permit us to say so, it’s a human dump.
All of us….want to launch a call for help but also an invitation to provide for containing the virus within the prisons and the problem of overcrowding, because the two are connected….
We’d like to remind you, Mr. President of the Republic, that all the institutions have the responsibility and duty to care also for the weakest and defenseless of society.
To “our” Pope Francis, we say thank you, and don’t worry if the powerful don’t listen to you, or listen very little, we love you.
In this very particular moment, in which we are all a little more equal, we are very trusting that our cry for help will not fall on deaf ears.
Signed: The inmates of the Casa di Reclusione Due Palazzi di Padova, Casa di Reclusione della Giudecca di Venezia, Casa Circondariale di Vicenza
(As of today, the President and the Premier have responded via the newspaper, with many thanks and expressions of appreciation, etc. Actions remain to be seen, but no deaf ears, in any case.)
