For anyone who's thought they'd like to visit any prisoners in the Cancun Jail/Prison, and would feel more comfortable going with someone who's been there before, you're welcome to join me. My visits are purely humanitarian, and I'll be going this Sunday. Hope it stops raining, before then! There are English speaking prisoners there who could enjoy the distraction of someone new to talk with: some of the ones I've met have been there for as long as six years, already, so anything new can be welcome. They have access to television, books and magazines, follow sports, etc., so you can easily find things to talk about with them. There are both men and women English speaking prisoners to be found in the common areas of the prison on visitation days, and Sundays are big family days, so expect there to be children there, as well.
Although your actions are admirable to visit the prisoners, my question is more like if you are in prison why do would they allow you to watch TV and so on. To me that means you are not really being punished. That just makes no sense at all to allow prisoners such liberties. And every one of us pays for such a thing. Shameful if you ask me. Its a prison not a place for entertainment.
Gabesz: how do we pay for these luxuries for Cancun prisoners? Their families are the ones that provide the $ for things like Tvs and books and magazines. At the facility in Ebtun, Yucatan, families even have to sometimes come up with money to feed their imprisoned family members.
Ahem. Have you watched TV? Watching TV is OFTEN a severe punishment in its own right. Also prisons have to be managed, they are systems where prisoners have needs, and if you don't meet those needs then you get riots and lose control of the prison. And one major thing prisoners need is to keep themselves occupied, TV is a simple and cheap way to occupy most people. Of course I would prefer to see prisons pushing all their inmates through prison-run college instead of having them waste away watching TV...
I agree totally that instead of having TV's they should teach them to become self reliant and non criminal when and if they are ever released. As for prisoners having needs, lets not forget the needs of those againts whom they committed the crimes that got them into prisons. Many people make that less of a priority for the prisoner to have rights. They are criminals and in jail because they committed a crime againts society or an individual. They do not deserve any rights.
Only in Mexico would families be allowed to provide the prisoners to have TV's, books etc provided by their own family. Although its better then the goverment paying for these luxuries (meaning you and I), they still should not have the right to watch TV. Make them become productive members of society even if in prison. There is a lot of work they can do in prison that is not being done on the outside because many are too proud to do demeaning jobs.
They why build a prison and pay people to guard them? Why not just kill them all? I don't think you believe they don't deserve any rights. I think you just want to decide for yourself what rights they should have, and your view is subjective. You think TV is a luxury, I think TV is annoying (except for Lost, which is not annoying at all). I'll bet if you ask prison officials they will tell you that the boob tube helps keep the place manageable.
One of my best guy friends is in a PA prison and he, well his friends or family, had to supply him with a TV if he wanted one (that is for sale through the commissary) and books. He is allowed two books a month that have to be ordered from the publisher only. So this is not a Mexican thing if that is what some people think. I know his Mom puts about $50 a month on his Commissary books for him to buy food that he bargins with...NOTHING illegal.
The weather yesterday in Cancun was near ideal for anything, including a visit to the Cancun Jail. Visitation mostly takes place in the open air, in areas sheltered from the sun. The territory on which visitation takes place is large, and there are several venues to choose from, including a large stage area, where bands can play and people dance; a large cafe area, with lots of plastic tables and chairs, and various foods on offer to the public; and, the area where I have ended up, twice, which also has a number of plastic tables and chairs, and coffee is served. Sunday, the people I visited were engaged in a game of "Risk" when I arrived. On visitation days, only those prisoners who are in "lock down" as punishment for violating the prison rules, or exhibiting antisocial behaviour, are prohibited from joining in: both male and female prisoners are free to participate, and mix with the visitors and other prisoners. The presence of both women and families with children, on visitations days, contributes to an atmosphere in which a visitor can feel relatively safe, and relaxed. Among those I met with, Sunday, was a young American who is now three years into a ten year sentence, so he was happy to see anybody new. _________________ The prisoners are allowed to engage in various forms of entrepreneurship to earn some spending money, so long as the activity they propose is not forbidden. Sunday, I spoke with a prisoner who makes pancakes in his cell every morning, then sells them to the other prisoners- earning, he said, about 50 pesos/day. Within the jail he then spends this money to buy food prepared by other prisoners who, perhaps, are cooks with a wider range than he has: this means he does not have to eat the prison food- which is free, but doesn't provide the same variety. At my last visit, I was told some of the prisoners had established a spa of sorts which offered massage for both prisoners and visitors, charging nothing but tips: I was interested in giving it a try. The spa had been established after the completion of a training program, sponsored by the city, in which prisoners were given the chance to learn this skill. The spa, so called, was very tranquil, had soft lighting and music playing, and offered three massage tables, each of them in use. Modesty was carefully observed by those giving the massages, and both men and women, prisoners and visitors, were taking advantage of the services. My massage was at the hands of a middle aged prisoner who frankly gave me a massage equivalent to the best that I've had, given the limitations of the facilities available. I fell asleep several times during the process, so relaxing was the setting, and the experience. The massage lasted one hour: I gave a 50 peso tip, as recommended by the prisoners I'd visited. ___________________ The "Cancun Jail" functions as both a jail (for temporary detention) and a prison (for the serving of longer sentences); it is, I'm told, a minimum security facility.
Well that is a VERY sharp contrast to what happens at least in a PA State Prison or County Facility. The inmate has to submit a Visitors list that has to be approved. On the County level, inmates are one person per table, facing the wall the guards are watching from. Each inmate is allowed three "guest" three days a week, determined by what "Block" they are on. You can hug the inmate for no more then 5 sec, and closed mouth kissing only. The only time anyone at the table is allowed to stand is when they are leaving, and girlfriends/boyfriends/spouses must sit at the seat directly across from inmate. Even if you are a relative, if they think you are one of the above, you are asked to sit in that seat. Before seeing the prisoner, once in the lobby of the prison, each visitor is searched in the bathroom by an officer. NO jewelry, no money, no food, no v neck shirts, no white t shirts, no open toe shoes, no holes in jeans, no hooded sweatshirts...the list goes on and on and on. AND your hands, and sometimes your pants are swiped with a cloth and put in a machine to detect residue from drugs...Including pot. I got turned away because of the lotion from Bath and Body Works I was wearing. It came back at positive for opiates. I left crying.. how embarrassing, when I have never even smoked a cigarette. Needless to say, this Mexican jail, sounds like a holiday.. In the visitation room. Who knows what happens behind the doors of the living space. I am not sure if most states work like that, but in Pennsylvania, this is how it is and I had to give my experience as what V has witnessed here on multiple visits seems like another wold to me.
