Number of attacks in prison risen

http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/2/hi/uk_news/wales/8087666.stm

The number of prisoner-on-prisoner attacks has risen 48%. Leanne Wood blames the criminal justice system, they cause chronically overcrowded prisons. Minister David Hanson (MP) says that reducing the violence is a priority. The biggest problem in Wales is the privately run ‘Parc-prison’. Although the number of prisoner-on-officer has fallen, as well as the self-harm cases, most of these incidents take place in Parc-prison. Ms Wood says that because of the overcrowded prisons it is difficult to maintain control and this explains the increasing number of prisoner-on-prisoner attacks. We need experienced officers, more community-based rehabilitation and behaviour programmes to reduce the violence.

This is a topic I normally would not choose but the problems in prisons in Holland have been in the newspapers several times this week too. I do not know Parc Prison so I cannot say what is going wrong there but I do think that the problems are caused by overcrowded prisons. The people working in prisons have to take care of a lot of prisoners and to have everything work smoothly you have to be in control. In my opinion rehabilitation and behaviour programmes are a good solution, although I am not sure every prisoner will be willing to work with these programmes.