Letter from a prisoner - Tis the worst time of the year

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The festive season evokes a sense of joy and achievement in all. Another year has come to an end and most enjoy a well deserved break. It is a time of family and friends, of creating memories. It is also a time of reflection and of setting goals for the year to come. Most inmates share these sentiments and the festive spirit permeates even the thick prison walls. For me though, it is the worst time of the year.

Over this period, the prison comes to a standstill; with only the essential activities taking place and the prison being locked very early every day. It is also obviously the end of the academic year. Consequently, there is a lot of free time with minimal productivity. Whilst I will pursue some personal endeavors, it is ultimately a period of stagnation. 

Some may wish for times of no responsibility and being able to literally do nothing, but the reality is horrible. Without purpose and productivity, man ceases to be man. 

The end of the year does signify being another year closer to freedom but that is a simplistic, one dimensional view. It is another year of my life that I can never replace. As many are, I too am proud of my achievements in 2018 but it is bitter for it is impossible to not think on what could have been. 

With so much free time, I invariably delve into the treasure chest of my past. I have been blessed to have experienced some incredible festive periods in my life. From umrah with grandparents to new years eve in Cape Town and from bustling cities to natural splendour, I have priceless memories. 

Reminiscing is a powerful form of escapism; I can almost feel the vibrations run up my arms as I reel in a trout, smell the freshness of the ocean, see the immaculate fairway before me, hear the laughter of loved ones and salivate at the memory of the taste of ice cream on a balmy summer day. The memories are bliss, but the return to reality is awful, not only because of my current station in life but because I will never get to make new ones with my parents. After all, memories are not about exotic locations or adventures but about the people we create them with. 

The festive season means more contact and precious time with family and friends, for me it is the polar opposite. As loved ones travel to all parts of the globe, I have less telephonic contact and fewer visitors. During this period, that which I look forward to most is suspended exacerbating my feelings of loneliness. Waiting to hear of their experiences does however fill me with excitement as knowledge of their joy is my source of joy.

With the above in mind, what frustrates me most is hearing complaints and negativity from almost everyone. "The hotel we stayed in before was better," "the food was not great," "he/she was starting to annoy me " "I didn't buy much," and "I had a lovely time...BUT..." are the types of comments that irk me. 

There are literally billions in the world, beginning with me, who can only dream of what you get to experience. So, be grateful for all that you are blessed with and get to experience over this festive season and in general. Start seeing the glass half-full, take time to smell the roses and treasure every second you share with loved ones. Take nothing for granted knowing that for some this is the worst time of the year! 

Letter from a prisoner - Separating fact from fiction

Picture taken from net images

In the digital age that we live in, it is almost impossible to not allow the messages that
we are exposed to, to impact on our understanding of any particular subject.
With regards to prison, this notion is exacerbated due to the (fortunate) fact that most people have never set foot in a prison.
Most of the questions that I am asked about prison life is indicative of the naivety of
society to prison happenings. The general perception of prison is derived from literature,
the media, movies and television series. Having read many books (fiction and non-fiction)
and watched my fair share of movies or series related to prison, I have realized that they
paint a very different picture to the reality behind the high walls and contribute to many misconceptions. The following are some of the common misconceptions and the actual realities:

 “Prison is dangerous”
Yes; prison contains the scum of society, those who have perpetrated the heinous crimes
that make you cringe when you hear about them, but within the confines of prison there is
relative safety. Being intimidated on a daily basis, having to watch your back at all times,
avoiding certain individuals, gangs, rape, shanks and the like are nice embellishments to any
script but they are not what a prisoner must endure. In all my years in prison, I have never
once been the victim of any such activity. Fights, some with improvised weapons, do occur
but with no more frequency than I had experienced at a prestigious all boys school. Rape is
almost unheard of. Gangsterism exists but not to the extent that it occurs in some societies
in the real world, it is merely an extension of what men were already involved in before their
incarceration. The scope of gang activity in prison is largely limited to drugs, with violence a
rarity. In many ways, I am probably safer in here than the average South African.

 “Contraband is difficult to obtain”
Contraband, especially in the form of money, drugs and cellular phones, is extremely simple
to obtain. Almost all wardens are corrupt and will gladly bring in items for inmates. They
make very good money from smuggling contraband into the prisons and are brazen enough
to approach inmates to offer their services.

 “Spending the rest of one’s life in prison”
In some parts of the world, life in prison literally means life in prison but in South Africa
there is no such thing. Those sentenced to “life” are eligible for parole after serving 25 years
of their sentences but amendments are continually made and some sentenced to life have
been released after serving as little as 12 years.

 “Prison food is terrible”
We live in a world where everyone has rights and have the right to have their rights
protected. Prisoners are no exception! On the whole, prison food is decent. It is pretty much
like eating at a boarding school. Most ingredients are what is sold in retail stores and the
preparation is done in a rather professional manner. The menu has variety and all cultural,
religious and medical needs are catered for. Prison kitchens are regularly inspected by
independent bodies and inmates have many avenues to pursue if they have issues with
food. Eating rats, cats, pigeons, insects or even each other does not happen in South African
prisons; though it is not only a Hollywood idea as it actually happens in places such as
Zimbabwe.

 “Prisoners have to follow strict routines”
There is no routine to follow aside from being at one’s cell at the time of lock up. Whilst the
cells are unlocked, an inmate has the freedom to engage in whatever activities he (or she)
likes. Food is served at certain times but does not have to be consumed at that particular
time or in a particular location, as commonly portrayed in mess halls in movies. The only
other mandatory routine is to be ready for a cell inspection on Sunday mornings, wherein
the cell and person are inspected for cleanliness.

 “Suicide is a common in prisons”
One would think that suicide would be an easy way out for those condemned to spend many
years in prison but that is a fallacy. The suicide rate for prisons is less than a quarter of the
national suicide rate. Whilst there are no real obstacles to committing suicide, it simply does
not occur frequently.

 “Most prisoners claim innocence”
On the contrary, most prisoners are proud to share the details of their crimes without any
remorse. The overwhelming majority acknowledge that they were wrong. They generally
show now regret for committing crime, rather they only regret being caught.

The portrayals of prison life that movie goers, bookworms and fans of series like
Prison Break and Orange is the New Black may be thoroughly entertaining but they
are by no means an accurate reflection of the reality. It is one of the rare cases in life
where fact is slightly better than fiction.

Letter from a prisoner - Entering the mind of a rapist

 

                                                      Picture courtesy rediff.com

                                         

Throughout the ages, one of the most perplexing of man’s actions is that of rape. Criminologists, sociologists, psychiatrists and the like all attempt to understand and rationalize the inherently irrational, without reaching any implicit conclusions. The fact that rape is not confined to any one race, culture, faith, socio-economic class, age or even gender only compounds the issue. Rape is baffling even though we live in an age in which promiscuity, infidelity and pornography have pervaded all spheres of society. Even within the confines of prison are rapists not understood and are consequently relegated to the lowest rungs of prison hierarchies.  

Recent heinous events locally as well as high profile convictions abroad compelled me to search for answers to a question that has periodically crossed my mind over the years of my incarceration- Why do men rape?
Instead of re-visiting theories found in textbooks, I embarked on attempts to enter the minds of actual convicted rapists. Under the promise of complete anonymity, several rapists opened up to me in informal discussions. The interviews that I share provide interesting perspectives on this epidemic but should in no way be construed as anything conclusive but merely as a cursory glance into the minds of rapists.

The first offender that I interviewed is a coloured man from a middle class background. After a night of partying with his friends, he was barely sober enough to drive himself home to his wife of roughly a year. He found his wife in bed and proceeded to initiate sex. His advances were turned down vocally and physically. He would not accept her refusal and proceeded to rape her. As a man he believes that he was entitled to sex whenever he wanted it from his wife. He does not believe that she had the right to refuse her husband. His perverse understanding of marriage is that when his wife said “I do” she became his to do with whatever and whenever he wanted. When questioned as to why he did not stop when she cried and fought him, he replied that she deserved to be hurt as she had hurt him more by refusing him.

Another rapist that I talked to is an uneducated black man from a township outside of Pretoria. He and two cronies felt that they had a right to rob white people. Democracy failed to give them a better life, so they felt that they would simply take what they were meant to inherit. During one robbery, they found the lady of the house at home. The leader of the trio said that they would never get to experience an upper class white lady and proceeded to rape her. He then encouraged his mates to also partake as they “shared everything.” They felt that a victim could regain their material possessions; armed robbery was not enough, so something more was needed to leave their mark on the victim.

A young man from a remote rural area was always turned down by women. They mocked him for being “ugly,” “lazy,” and a mommies boy. The only way to prove his manliness and satisfy his desires of sex and revenge on women was to rape them. Over the course of 2 years, he raped his way from town to town before the bright lights of the city attracted him. In the proverbial candy store, he increased his exploits before eventually being apprehended. He claims to have raped over 40 women though he was convicted for “only” 6. For him, the ability to dominate and intimidate proved to be an aphrodisiac. When asked why he did not simply utilize prostitutes, he said that aside from it being a waste of money, prostitutes were “dirty” and would not have satisfied him the way rape did.

Another conversation was with a white man who is over 6 feet tall and weighs over 120 kilograms. He and his girlfriend often took care of his niece as her mother worked long hours. He did not tell anyone that he was into kiddie pornography and soon fantasized about his niece. One day he was left to babysit the child alone and his fantasy became a reality, as he raped the 8 year old girl.

Another white man raped or sodomized children under his care as a music professor, who tutored kids at the local church. In court, he claimed to have raped the children as an expression of his immense love for the children. Now, as a born-again, he rationalizes his acts by saying that he only did to those kids what his uncle had done to him as a young boy.

After these and other discussions a small part of me is able to comprehend the atrocities that took place but for the most part I am more perplexed than before. Rape defies logic and reason and why men rape will perhaps always remain a mystery.

Dear Mr. President

                                                              Picture by DeviantArt

Dear Mr President,

Reading a South African newspaper nowadays has become quite a depressing affair. Our newspapers are riddled with stories of brutal rape, murder, cash in transit heists, burning down of infrastructure, patients dying in government hospitals and let’s not forget stories of corruption. In simple English, stories about how government and members of your cabinet steal my hard earned money in order to live a life of super luxury. The day you became president of the Republic of South Africa, I was elated. In fact there was a feeling of euphoria and hope. Finally, we have a president who is educated and will be able to make decisions in the interest of his citizens. A few months later, that euphoria has died and we have very quickly come to learn that you Mr Ramaphosa are no better than your predecessor, Mr. Jacob ‘showerhead” Zuma.  Within a short space of time you have made the lives of fellow South Africans a living hell through the intermittent rise of petrol prices that of course creates a ripple effect, thereby increasing prices of basic necessities like food. When you took your oath as a president, I was hoping that you will do the right thing. I was hoping that you will fire the entire cabinet especially those individuals who have stolen tax payer’s money through elaborate well thought through schemes. I was under the impression that the corrupt will now have their day in court and possibly remain in a jail for many years to come. Alas, I was wrong. Then I realised how the ANC function.  An organization that fought for a particular course has now become a mafia organization that has turned South Africa into a rogue state.  You were unable to get rid of the corrupt individuals in government simply because all ANC members have skeletons in their closets. All members have something to hide. So you all cover up for each other and simply prevent the ‘secrets’ from emerging by employing your buddies in key positions of power. Give them a post, let them earn a fat cat salary and they will keep their mouths shut. Politics is after all a dirty game Mr. President. A friend today is your foe tomorrow.

As a young South African I watched the transition in 1994 on television as it unfolded. It was a historical moment. I was a part of history. However, as the years went by I started noticing this country regressing. Each time I visited abroad I realized just how backward we were becoming in all aspects of governance.  SAA was one of the best airlines in the world not too long ago. Our economy use to be the best in Africa. Under the auspices of the ANC, a world class country has turned into an absolute ‘shithole’. Believe you me, I am not a fan of Mr Trump, but he certainly does have a point. Since the ANC lacks vision and foresight as to how a country should be run, I have decided to put forward a guideline titled “From a Banana Republic to a super power” If I was the president of South Africa, this is how I would implement positive changes in this country.

1. I would fire the entire cabinet with immediate effect. No one needs to have uneducated parasites sitting in government eating the tax payers hard earned money.  At present we have individuals sitting in parliament with no formal education. Are these the role models we want for our youth? I don’t think so. I would appoint well educated individuals with credibility. In other words people who are experts in their fields. I will reduce the salaries of all government members including my own as president. Except for ministers all other members will pay for their own transport and flights. They will all reside in their own homes. Splashing out R26 million on ministers houses will be a thing of the past.  The blue light brigade will be a thing of the past and expenditure on VIP bodyguards will be reduced. You see Mr. President when a person has nothing to hide, when a person is loved and respected by the public at large there is no need to walk around with numerous bodyguards in tow.  Credit must be given where due and hence walking with the public in the morning to encourage good health is quite a fantastic idea. Taking a flight on SAA with ordinary South Africans was a brilliant publicity stunt. If only this could be the norm. The South African flag represents a rainbow nation and hence there will be equal representation in parliament taking into consideration all communities.  (Whites, Blacks, Indians, Coloureds..all communities). All parliamentarians must have some form of education. At least a bachelors degree.  Without a qualification you will not be allowed to be a member of parliament.

2. The borders will be shut with professionally trained military personnel. Anyone wanting to enter SA will do so with proper documentation. You will be allowed to reside here if you are educated and add value to the country or if you are a business person willing to invest money in this country. At present we have a huge problem Mr. President. Anyone is allowed to cross our borders due to CORRUPTION. Many illegal immigrants are involved in criminal activities. The government needs to have a specialized police force dealing with getting rid of illegal immigrants.  All foreigners residing here using the resources of the country will be forced to pay taxes. At present a small percentage of South Africans are paying taxes supporting millions who are not paying taxes at all.

3. The death penalty will be reinstated for murder, rape, drug and human trafficking and corruption. I noticed that China is one your biggest allies. Whilst your organization chooses to learn the policies of Communism from China, please take note that China's policy with regards to corruption is the death penalty. Execute a few corrupt ministers and I am pretty sure many will be afraid to steal from public funds.  Let’s go through this scenario Mr President. I work 13 hours a day, 7 days a week to make sure that I am able to pay off my staff and suppliers at month end. I also need to pay SARS every second month. Money goes into treasury and is then distributed to other departments to improve my lifestyle and the lives of other South Africans. But this is not what’s happening. The elite members within government are taking my money that I worked for and using it to lead lives of luxury. In essence we are all working to make people in government rich. THIS NEEDS TO STOP.  Corrupt ministers should be executed.

4. Our education system has crumbled post 1994. I am of the opinion that it is now worse than Bantu education. Students now need 30 percent to pass mathematics. This is an absolute joke. In fact it’s quite scary. What kind of professionals is this country going to be producing? A time will come when a degree obtained from South Africa will no longer be recognised abroad. We have serious issues and flaws in our education system. Schools that were built to cater for 650 students are now catering for 1200 students. In some schools not all children have received text books due to this issue. In 2018, kids are still dying as a result of utilizing pit toilets. It’s absolutely disgusting.  This is a direct result of CORRUPTION. I could be wrong, but I am pretty sure Mr President that you knew about the ongoing corruption when you were the deputy president of this country. But you did nothing about it. Money that was allocated to build schools has been siphoned off into the personal banking accounts of those who were entrusted to empower the youth through education. Does it not bother you Mr President that whilst your family is educated and leads a life of luxury, there are kids out there who cannot read or write yet they too have dreams.How do you go to bed Mr President,knowing that there are kids in your country who are homeless going to bed on an empty stomach. Education is the back bone of a strong nation. In order for a country to succeed on a global scale we need to place more emphasis on education. More money needs to be allocated towards education. However, the ANC will not do that simply because an educated nation is an empowered nation. It’s much easier controlling sheep like individuals with no education, in other words people who are consistently dependent on the state. Hence taking out the race card which is now an old, stale out dated concept will still work well in terms of instigating the masses. Unfortunately it will not appeal to an educated person. Own up and admit that the ANC have failed miserably in terms of running this country. Admit that the ANC have failed the nation. Own up to the mistakes rather than blaming apartheid. I think 100 years will pass by and the ANC will still continue to blame the apartheid regime. The minister of education should be a person who is an expert in child education. Send a team abroad to see different schooling models from around the world, like Finland or Korea for example. Implement world class strategies here in our country. The idea is to have the best in the field managing a portfolio, rather than the idiotic uneducated buffoons we see managing important government departments.

5. Our water and sanitation department is in a shambles. Does it not bother you Mr President that the Vaal river is over flowing with sewage which will result in the death of fish and ultimately cause illness to those who consume the water. Again, our infrastructure is not maintained due to the CORRUPTION.  All over the city there are water leaks. This in turn impacts negatively on our dam levels.  Your municipalities are bankrupt. There is no money to do maintenance work simply because the ANC are a bunch of thieves. If you are a thief you will prosper within the ANC. Instead of firing the former minister of sanitation, she gets re-appointed to manage another portfolio. It’s like taking a surgeon who botched up a patients operation, and telling him, no problem, operate on another patient and kill him too. I have never come across a more stupid, more ignorant government decision making team. In a quest to cover up the theft, and of course to obtain more votes, the best interest of the country has always been sacrificed. Our water systems should be handled by engineers who are experienced in their fields. Water desalination plants should have been constructed a long time ago. Then again the ANC is all about destruction rather than construction

6. The ANC have failed miserably in terms of protecting the citizens of this country. We rank as one of the most dangerous countries in the world. This is expected considering the fact that many of our police have criminal records. A country riddled with high crime rates will definitely have a negative impact on the tourism industry. I will be blatantly honest in saying that I do not encourage my friends abroad to visit South Africa simply because I cannot guarantee their safety.  Our police are inadequately trained to handle complex situations. In our suburb the police openly in broad day light receive bribes from notorious drug lords. Drugs that are confiscated by the police makes it way back onto the streets with the police benefiting from these illegal activities. CORRUPTION within the police force seems to rear its ugly head all the time with important dockets and documentation going missing. Our men in uniform, teachers and medical personnel should be well paid as these individuals carry a huge responsibility in terms of making the country a world class nation.  In SA the ministers who sit on their asses doing sweet bugger all expect 5 and 6 figure salaries whilst the civil servants are paid menially. The citizens should reside in fear whilst the ministers and you, Mr President walk around with many bodyguards in tow. Our men in uniform lack education. Many cannot read and write. In simple terms, there is nothing to be proud about being the president of a banana republic. Only in South Africa do police stations get robbed and only in South Africa do police stations have car guards to protect vehicles.  Policemen with criminal records should not be allowed to be a part of the police force.

7. Our roads are in an absolute sad state of affairs. Many people are dying on our roads due to potholes. Alas, this does not bother you Mr President for as long as you and your family reside in luxury nothing else and no one else matters. But it does matter. The day you became President  of this country, you became the father of the nation. Not just the father to your own kids. Once again let’s not forget about the high levels of CORRUPTION within our licensing departments. Driver’s licences are being sold to people who have no idea how to drive. Let’s not even talk about the mafia taxi industry responsible for the death of thousands of people every year. Many of the taxis are not road worthy and neither do many of the drivers have proper licences. How can a government allow a group of thugs to transport citizens on a daily basis. If I were the president I’d shut down the taxi industry. Gautrain must be expanded to all parts of the city. A metro –rail system should be built linking all towns on the outskirts to the inner city. We can improve on our railway and bus system. Proper metered cabs that we see in other parts of the world should be introduced into the transport sector.  All cargo from the coast should be transported inland via trains. In this way, we will be able to curb road damage on our national highways by trucks and tankers. Once proper infrastructure is in place we should then prevent cars from driving into the inner city. We should force people to use public transport thereby saving our fuel reserves.

8. Isn’t it ironical Mr President that you and your family utilize private health care facilities whilst the citizens of the county who have no access to private health care are forced to use pathetic government hospitals that do not have basic medication. A friend of mine died waiting to get an emergency bypass done. He was placed on a long waiting list. Let’s not even talk about the oncology patients. It makes my blood boil. Once again due to mass looting and CORRUPTION, there is no money to provide SA citizens with proper medical care. Never mind the patients, there is no money to pay intern doctors. If I were in charge of the country, all government employees would utilize government hospitals only. Maybe then those in charge will think twice before stealing and looting from the state coffers.

9. The topic of land reform is undoubtedly the biggest joke of the century and of course a way of gaining votes for the ANC. The ANC might be smiling now but trust me the White Afrikaaner farmer will be having the last laugh. He will be welcomed with open arms in other countries who will subsidize them without a doubt. Agriculture is a major component and factor when it comes to economic growth and prosperity. As a person who travels extensively I am sure you must have seen farming models of other first world countries to realise just how important farming and agriculture is to the central development of the country. In very simple terms, your own people will land up suffering. If you want the land back, that’s great. Pay the farmers the market value of the farms. If the farmer is paying off a bond, will the government continue to make those bond payments to the bank?  The government is in possession of thousands of hectares of land. Why hasn’t this land been distributed to the people as yet? The Zulu king owns hectares of land that he generates an income from. Why isn’t that land given to the people? You see Mr President, it’s very easy to fool people who are illiterate but you won’t be able to fool the wise and learned. I am not sure if you aware of this fact, but your country is experiencing a brain drain. Every day educated and skilled South African citizens are leaving this country due to the economic and political instability. It’s very easy taking away the farms but if you give it to people who have no idea how to administrate a commercial farm, you are achieving sweet bugger all. Being a farmer is not about having land and tools. It involves knowledge and skill. The government should have encouraged the White Afrikaaner farmer to take all the empty spaces of land and farm increasing yields for export.  A partnership of some sought could have been put into place between the farmer and the local indigenous community. Perhaps a profit sharing model could have been implemented. Other countries are hungry to take in people of skill. Here in SA we are driving people of skill away.

10. The ANC has done nothing apart from mass looting in all sectors of government. I would be ashamed to be a part of an organization that has stolen billions at the expense of the poor. So the mere fact that you went abroad and brought in loans from China and the Middle East is nothing to be proud about. I wonder how much of that money will be used profitably and effectively to benefit the people of SA and how much of that money will be siphoned off into personal banking accounts? SA is bankrupt and will never be able to repay the debt.  The only way you can solve the issues of this country is running this country with an iron fist. Those who have stolen should be imprisoned for long periods of time and the stolen money should be returned to the state coffers.  In simple terms you need to do a full cleanup operation. You need to strengthen and expand the manufacturing sector in this country. More manufacturing plants are required to employ more people. The Chinese must be told that if they wish to do business in this country they need to employ South African citizens. The reason why this country has high fuel prices is due to CORRUPTION AND MASS LOOTING... The only way the government can now scratch for money is through increased fuel levies.

By now you must have realized Mr President that the root problem in your country is the ANC and the deeply rooted CORRUPTION within the ANC. You have 2 choices Mr President, man up and run this country the way it should be run leaving a legacy behind for generations to come or Mr.President go down in the history books as “Mr. Ramaphosa, a spineless president”