Problems and Human Rights Failures in Canadian Prisons

Introduction

The Harper Conservative Government (2006–2015) contributed significantly to the punitive structure of corrections that exists today. In many ways it borrowed from the American approach to criminal justice, with its focus on punitive rather than rehabilitative or restorative justice (Webster & Doob, 2015). As a result, the Canadian prison system now faces multiple issues, including overcrowding, lack of counsel for inmates, and the use of segregation in prison administration. Health problems are rampant among prisoners, many of whom have mental health issues that go untreated (Kouyoumdjian, Schuler, Matheson & Hwang, 2016).

Essentially, the human rights of prisoners are often nullified, despite the fact that the United Nations listed ten basic principles for the treatment of prisoners that specifically focus on preserving those rights (Office of the High Commissioner, 1990). Even though the Canadian criminal justice system reserves the right under constitutional law to restrict certain rights from those sentenced to prison under the Charter of Rights and Freedoms, this practice conflicts with what the UN proclaimed in General Assembly resolution 45/111 of 14 December 1990. Instead of aligning policy with this resolution, Canada has oriented itself toward the American model of justice, which is inherently punitive and prejudicial.

This paper describes the research findings that explain why these problems persist and analyzes whether that research is credible. The main reason for the persistence of these problems is that the system has veered away from viewing offenders as human beings. There is a substantial lack of cultural competence among administrators and legislators, which leads to the marginalization and oppression of the prison population. The central problem is the absence of an up-to-date cultural code of ethics regulating the system.

Research Findings

The culture of prison administration differs markedly from the culture of civilian life, according to Ricciardelli, Power, and Medeiros (2018). Culture can be defined as the customs, viewpoints, and values that encompass social behavior and norms (Hofstede, 2011). Prison culture is the set of norms and values that persist within corrections institutions. While most of Canadian society views violence as abhorrent, the situation is different inside corrections facilities. Correctional officers interpret violence in a much different way from the general public primarily because they work in an environment where violence is considered more of a norm (Ricciardelli et al., 2018). The cultural values that govern civilian society stop at the doors of corrections facilities, where a different set of values has taken hold — fostered by the hard-line approach to treating offenders that emerged under the Harper government. Violence persists in prisons partly because administrators do not attempt to cultivate an environment in which civil values are encouraged, and because prison lobbies influence government, little is done to change this. The symptom of violence is an indication of an underlying problem of cultural divergence that must be addressed.

Ethnic culture is also a problem within the system. Discrimination against Black people, Indigenous people, and other people of colour in the Canadian justice system has been persistent because of ethnic cultural bias and racism, which prevents detainees and incarcerated individuals from achieving full access to justice — whether in terms of legal counsel or healthcare (Silverman & Molnar, 2015). One serious issue is that immigration detainees are not afforded all their rights or due process. Rather than adhering to the UN principle of respect for all ethnic cultures, the justice system in Canada adopts a perspective that is prejudicial toward minorities, and rights are not applied universally to all people within the prison system (Silverman & Molnar, 2015).

Finally, Burdett, Gouliquer, and Poulin (2018) identify the culture of corrections as the primary reason that issues such as segregation, sexism, violence, bias, and insecurity persist among the incarcerated population. There is no supportive prison culture that affords inmates the dignity they require. The prison culture effectively treats prisoners as less than human — as individuals with no rights (Burdett et al., 2018). The ethnicity, gender, heritage, and background of inmates are not viewed as important (Burdett et al., 2018). Yet, as the researchers note, prisoners must be treated with the same fairness and justice that other people receive because they remain human beings; their dignity is not diminished by imprisonment, even though the prevailing prison culture appears to suggest otherwise (Burdett et al., 2018).

Conclusion

A punitive prison system in Canada has prevailed. It de-emphasizes the value of inmates' ethnic culture and fosters a prison culture that is inhuman and disrespectful of human rights. The justice system is punitive rather than restorative or humane. It aims to punish, and any affliction delivered to inmates is deemed justified on the grounds that punishment has served as the foundation of the prison system since the days of the Harper government. That system is built on a prejudicial perspective that paints minorities as alien and offenders as sub-human. It is this perspective that must change if the problems described above are to be solved.