Not exactly hard labour
The Dominion Post reports on life at Arohata Prison, where Donna Awatere-Huata will probably reside. Inmates get:
* An unlocked chalet-style cell
* Personal TV
* La-Z-Boy Armchair
* Communal kitchen between four
* Weekly visits to the supermarket
The other interesting fact was that 60% of inmates come from the Hawke’s Bay. That is a staggeringly high figure for a prison which takes in the entire lower North Island.
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August 25th, 2005 at 9:20 am
I knew someone (not by choice) who had spent some time in Arohata and not only were they allowed to bake cakes etc, but on Christmas Day they were given presents from the Prison! Glad to hear that our taxes are paying for them to have a holiday, maybe that is why there are so many from the HB in Prison! Better Life?
August 25th, 2005 at 9:22 am
I knew someone (not by choice) who had spent some time in Arohata and not only were they allowed to bake cakes etc, but on Christmas Day they were given presents from the Prison! Glad to hear that our taxes are paying for them to have a holiday, maybe that is why there are so many from the HB in Prison! Better Life?
August 25th, 2005 at 9:32 am
I got the impression that the article said they “could” have TVs in their room & luxury armchairs, and I thought that implied they could if they supplied them themselves.
Um… don’t get the idea all the Arohata accommodation is of the “chalet” type. I think they said there were 4 of them, for very low risk prisoners & those perhaps about to be released.
Prison is no holiday, chalet notwithstanding.
August 25th, 2005 at 9:35 am
How much to stay in these serviced apartments? If its cheaper than my mortgage I might just consider relocating…
August 25th, 2005 at 10:00 am
Ooh… and to respond to Isabel’s last statement… I daresy that prison is a better life for some of them than home. Which is pretty sad. And also probably why they end up there.
August 25th, 2005 at 11:01 am
you could change the title to:
“Not exactly hard, Labour”
August 25th, 2005 at 11:38 am
Donna wont need one of the 4 self care units ( with 150 other cells) as she clearly doesnt qualify’.
As Corrections say…
Self care units have been set up to teach inmates independent living skills. In addition to the reintegrative focus in the unit, a special version of the living skills programme has been designed (see also the section on Special Units, below)..
Although the prison first opened in 1925 as a Womens Borstal the self care unit only opened in July 2002 so its construction was approved under the previous National- Mauri Pacific- Alamein Kopu government( remember them after blowing up the NZFirst caolition, National formed one with a Maori party , one which enabled Donna Awatere to begin her larceny)
As a highly educated professional and ex MP she had living skills down pat, spending others money on luxury items was her main problem.
August 25th, 2005 at 11:44 am
Deborah Coddington gushed about the self care units when she visited in Feb 2005.
Monday 14 Feb
Why did we go to Arohata Women’s Prison? To see the self-care unit, where selected women spend time prior to release. In these villas they do their own washing, cooking, shopping (supervised) and are generally helped to integrate back into society. The more integrated prior to release, the less likely they are to return to crime. One villa is reserved for women about to give birth, or with babies. The babies are brought in for bonding and breastfeeding, then when they’re six months old a caregiver takes over. It’s a fine line between ‘normalising’ children about prisons, and treating female prisoners who’ve just had a baby with some sort of humanity.
Deborah now spends her time spilling the beans on her colleagues about her time in HM prison Parliament
August 25th, 2005 at 12:17 pm
And would they want to punish the other “chalet/villa” dwellers by forcing communal living with Donna? Share the kitchen? I can just see how it would pan out….
August 25th, 2005 at 1:51 pm
She should be breaking rocks…
August 25th, 2005 at 2:27 pm
Come on!
It will hardly be a beach for her. Remember she did in effect steal Maori children’s money. The comments in prison from other inmates are already flowing to that effect if reports are true. Unlike many years ago when she was physically able to defend herself with a punch here or there, her stapling op has left her very frail looking. I doubt she could defend herself if attacked.
Has anyone discussed whether she is going to pay any of the money back? I have not read anywhere this is in the plan but it should be.
August 25th, 2005 at 2:57 pm
Well, with the ACT Party being cleaned out in the next month, I’m sure they could dig up a TV, Video, DVD, Armchair, etc, from HQ, they won’t be needing them.
I only hope the ACT stooges show some Christain charity to a fallen comrade
August 25th, 2005 at 4:00 pm
Hah! I’m not sure the word “charity” will be much bandied around where she’s concerned.
August 25th, 2005 at 4:05 pm
Cadmus:
ACT don’t have comrades, wrong philosophy.
Can you tell me the name of any party in Parliament who doesn’t regret having had a politician on their roster?
August 25th, 2005 at 5:47 pm
The irony that no one has mentioned that the first MP convicted of stealing ( the crimes were committed while she was an ACT MP) was from the right. And it was government money ! Funny that.
Im waiting for her auto biography, will leave dipstick Deborah for dead, tau henare cant be sleeping straight at night
August 25th, 2005 at 6:00 pm
Yes, Cathy. If she’s paid the money back what’s the problem? I haven’t heard about this either. It makes a big difference in my mind.
August 25th, 2005 at 7:16 pm
Being in prison sucks big time. Try it yourself before disparaging minor luxuries afforded to inmates. There’s not many people that would choose it over freedom, even impoverished freedom.
If you don’t mind getting beat up, constantly watched, told what to do all the time, not getting much choice about food, bugger all choice of mental stimulation, total limition of who you can see and when, almost no sex unless you are gay, hanging out with crooks all day, … hang on, no wonder you guys think it’s great
I’m no fan of Awatere, btw. But the way you guys carry on you’d think she’d killed someone, rather than just predictably betraying her gullible colleagues.
August 25th, 2005 at 7:42 pm
“Im waiting for her auto biography, will leave dipstick Deborah for dead, tau henare cant be sleeping straight at night”
Note to whoever is involved in the compilation of this book about Donna’s life in jail.
Get cash upfront!!
Tim – I think it makes a huge difference if she is going to pay the money back. She should get jail time still but mitigate the sentence. It would also prove that she accepts what she did was wrong and that it was not her money.
Sadly though I think the pigs have drunk everything at the trough and the trough is bare.
The tragedy in this for Donna is the Donna did this to basically keep Wi (vanity, weight loss etc). If he stays out of jail, do you think he will hang around waiting for her to get out??
August 25th, 2005 at 8:02 pm
The only way she could begin paying it back would be drip feeding paltry amounts via a court sanctioned attachment order. This would likely come off any benefit she recieves after release.
So, in short it won’t get paid back in full. Who will be counting anyway? They certainly weren’t or this fraud would never have occurred in the first place.
With accomplished fraudsters the convictions are usually only the tip of the iceberg, I should add.
August 25th, 2005 at 11:00 pm
Ah yes, let’s go back to the good ol’ days, Dave, where we had them chipping away in quarries and rotting away in dungeons!
August 26th, 2005 at 4:22 am
Glad to see that New Zealand treats prisoners in a civilised fashion. The rising prison population is a great cause for concern, however.
August 26th, 2005 at 8:29 am
I see the chalet inmates have to cook their own food. If their cooking is bad then perhaps they are suffering enough, hehehehehehe