Prison Visit

Fr. Dismas Turinawe, OFM is the Guardian of the Novitiate in Kakoba, Uganda, where I live. He is a member of The Province of St. Francis in East Africa. His personal project is to visit those imprisoned at the three prisons in the Mbarara area. Myself and two novices accompanied him last Saturday on a visit to one prison in Kakkia (sp?). He makes two trips a week and brings different novices with him each time. It is part of their ministry experience of the Novitiate. He celebrated Mass for about 30 inmates. He also has helped with the inmates school fees but the resource for the money has dried up and it is not possible at this time. He is able to provided medicine when he can. More on that later.

The conditions in the prison are very primitive. There are only dirt floors and concrete walls. The place looks run-down but the men appear neatly dressed and clean in their bright yellow uniform shirts and shorts. Pants are also available but since it was a warm day most of the inmates were in shorts. The cloth also has a black pin stripe about a foot or so apart. It was meal time when we arrived so we had time to observe the main and only meal of the day. The inmates eat once a day. They were given a large bowl of maize (corn meal) which is cooked to a solid (sort of like mashed potatoes but thicker in consistency) and a large portion of cooked red beans. I saw many of the men walk back to their living areas with uneaten food. This was to be consumed later, or so I was told by the Novices. The Novices also informed me about the life in prison. The inmates work very hard in fields doing farm work and other manual labor. Individuals hire out the inmates through the government. The government is paid for this work but the inmates do not get paid. Their medical care is through another inmate who also is a nurse. If treatment or care is required the inmates are provided with this. Families are sometimes required to pay for any treatment received. Medication is not always provided and if the inmate does not have family they go without. That is why Fr. Dismas has added this to him ministry when funds allow.

I was struck with the attitude of the men I observed. They were polite and grateful for our presence. The worship space was a porch of a building that was about four feet wide and thirty feet long. It faced the main courtyard that lead to the “Kitchen” area and where the inmates obtained their food for the day. Despite the noise of men getting their food and the cramped conditions of the worship space the inmates were focused and participated fully in the Mass. My impressions of these inmates is not unlike my impression of inmates that I have worked with in the US. I guess the effects of incarceration, regardless of the environment, conditions and situation, are universal. In times of trouble men turn to their faith for consolation and a feeling of normalcy. One of the corporal works of mercy is to visit the imprisoned. I recognize you may not be in a position to do so but during this Lent please say a prayer for all people, Men and women, throughout the worldo who are in prison. Peace and all good. ODE tim