We're judged by how we treat our weakest

Since 2001 OBV has worked in the Criminal Justice system on many frontiers: holding Magistrates Shadowing schemes to nurture talent; promoting the recruitment of lay visitors to prisons to ensure justice is served; and visiting prisons to hold talks, panel debates and workshops with inmates.

Fifteen years ago, we were proud to lend support to Unlock, an organisation that supports the resettlement of ex-offenders by helping them lead crime-free lifestyles.

One of its main aims is to secure legislation giving prisoners the right to vote. The Criminal Justice process in the UK and most parts of the World is punitive rather than restorative i.e. that we punish people for crimes they commit, rather than looking at ways to help avoid reoffending and integrating ex-offenders back into society.

This week the European Court of Human Rights ruled yet again that the UK Government is compelled to give prisoners the right to vote. However, for over 10 years since the first prisoner took his case to the European Court - Governments, their Ministers, advisors and many backbenchers have dragged their feet or simply refused to budge on this issue fearing the wrath of the print media, and of voters at the doorstep.

Increasingly, the UK is finding itself isolated, from the consensus on this topical issue. The only other European countries that give less rights to prisoners are Russia, and some Eastern and Central European states including Armenia, Estonia, Hungary, but even many of these countries have started moving for change.

Mahatma Ghandi said:

‘A nation's greatness is measured by how it treats its weakest members’.

How this debate unfolds and the net result for our UK prison population is a mirror of what we want our society to be: one of hate and retribution or of hope and compassion.

Ashok Viswanathan