Dear editor,

It is not very often that civil society groups get the full support of the minister who has portfolio responsibility for the issue on which they advocate. Stand Up for Jamaica has proven that this is not always the case and was indeed blessed to have Pearnel Charles Jr as the minister responsible for correctional services.

During the time he served in this capacity as State Minister in the Ministry of National Security, he proved to be a catalyst for change as he pursued a range of initiatives, which were aimed at improving the operations of the island’s prisons.

 The support that Minister Charles provided to Stand Up for Jamaica’s mission to transform the lives of inmates through rehabilitation involved bringing us into a national partnership with the Ministry of National Security and providing the environment and policy framework for rehabilitation to take place. Through his insistence on the need for a change in the culture of correctional services, he led the way in championing the need for a rehabilitative and restorative approach to punishment rather than a punitive one.

 As a human rights organisation we were very heartened by his commitment to defending the human rights of inmates. As a human rights lawyer he remained true to his core principles in the execution of his ministerial responsible.

 The relationship between Stand Up for Jamaica and Minister Charles was such that we were able to collaborate on a revamped rehabilitation strategy, which is now embodied in the recently rolled out Fresh Start programme.

Minister Charles not only assigned staff from his office to work specifically on developing and guiding the implementation of the rehabilitation strategy but was integrally involved every step of the way. He also endeared himself to the inmates by making regular visits to all the prisons for which he has ministerial responsibility. He also was gracious in attending a number of concerts, cricket and football matches organized by Stand Up for Jamaica for the inmates.

 The corrections portfolio was fully serviced while it was in the hands of Minister Charles, and it is our hope that this will also be the case with Minister Horace Chang who will now have responsibility for both national security and corrections.

 We wish Minister Charles all the best on his new assignment at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade.

Carla Gullota