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Visiting parliamentarians from France impressed by Canadian prisons

By Agence France Presse (AFP)
(February 2000)

MONTREAL (AFP) - Some French deputies (elected members of the French national assembly) who are members of the commission of inquiry on prisons were impressed by the "professionalism" of the Canadian system after visiting numerous "abominable" prisons in every corner of France.

The delegation - consisting of six deputies (and two administrators) - arrived this week to have a close look at the Canadian prison system, which is considered one of the best in the world. The commission, whose mandate is to take stock of the whole French prison system, is scheduled to submit its recommendations in July.

"This is definitely the prison of my dreams," said Christine Boutin, deputy from the right of centre UDF party (Union pour la démocratie française) for Yvelines, after spending a day in various federal penitentiaries. According to André Vallini of the socialist party (PS/Isère), "In France, we are in the Middle Ages compared to Canada."

It wasn't so much the Canadian cells, which they found "no better" than the ones in France, that interested them, but rather the Correctional Service of Canada's reintegration objective.

"From the moment someone sets foot in prison, a whole process is set in motion to work towards that inmate's reintegration upon release," said Ralliement pour la République deputy (France's main Gaullist party) André Cousin (RPR/Manche), who, like his colleagues, deplored the "purely disciplinary" mindset of the French system. In Canada, anyone sentenced to more than two years of confinement is sent to a "reception centre," where they undergo a psychological and medical assessment to determine the security level and reintegration programs needed.

Depending on the results, inmates are transferred to a minimum, medium or maximum security institution, where they can begin paid training or work. There are regular assessments to determine whether they can continue to serve their sentence in a lower-security institution.

Single-occupancy cells, which are becoming more widespread, along with sports fields and public telephones, as well as private facilities for family visits, which are currently being tried in France, make Canadian prisons more humane and inmates less violent.

On the other hand, the hard cases, who currently represent less than 1% of the prison population, are kept together in the only "special handling unit" in Canada, at Sainte-Anne des Plaines, Quebec. Thick bars and windows are everywhere, and the inmates are handcuffed whenever they are moved.

In terms of the overall structure of the penitentiary system, the visiting parliamentarians were interested in the "Correctional Investigator," an independent mediator who deals with inmate complaints, a system they viewed as a method for "ensuring transparency," which they feel is missing in France.

"In our recommendations, we are going to suggest the establishment of a similar structure, in the form of a general delegation for individual freedoms, which would perform an oversight function for all institutions of confinement in France," said Jacques Floch (PS/Loire Atlantique), the commission's rapporteur. He feels that there is much to learn from Canada's experience.

However, Canadian criminologist Jean-Claude Bernheim maintains that while "things in Canada look good on paper, they are anything but convincing in practice." His view is that while "the prisons are architecturally acceptable, the prisoners are subjected to an incredible level of psychological control."

He reminded us that in 1997, Canada had 129 prisoners per 100,000 inhabitants, the second highest level among the democracies. The 1997 figures were 645 for the United States, 110 for France and only 53 for Norway.

© 2000 AFP. Tous droits de reproduction et de représentation réservés.