A misleading impression?
SIR David Danum's prejudices in his column - 'It seems that prison really is a holiday camp' (DFP 26/11/09) - serve only to create a misleading impression of the provision of educational services to prisoners.
Apart from anything else, since there are only four prisons in South Yorkshire out of a UK total of around one hundred and forty, it is highly unlikely that 'a good proportion' of the money spent nationally will have been spent in South Yorkshire.
Furthermore, as the only yoga teacher working in a South Yorkshire prison, I would dare to suggest that the provision of yoga classes for inmates is beneficial to the prison population, simply because yoga helps to teach people to control their aggressive behaviour and manage their anger. It helps people cope with their cravings.
By learning relaxation techniques and meditation, prisoners can address their own feelings of depression, anger and worthlessness.
Yoga can help to re-educate their attitudes towards society with the result that prisoners can actually become useful members of society.
All human beings need practical, positive aspirations and encouragement in order to function effectively.
The prison population is disproportionately made up of people who have suffered psychological or sexual abuse, drug or alcohol dependency, social or economic deprivation, low levels of educational achievement and emotional awareness combined with high levels of violence and aggression.
Given that the courts have decided to imprison such people, therapies such as yoga provide an opportunity for prisoners to take stock of their lives and even give them the tools to bring about positive changes to their behaviour.
J FitzPatrick
Axholme Road
Doncaster
Email to a friend
Print this page
Looking for...
Featured advertisers
Jobs
Search for a job
Motors
Search for a car
Property
Search for a house
Weather for Doncaster
Sunday 05 February 2012
Today
Sunny spells
Temperature: 2 C to 6 C
Wind Speed: 9 mph
Wind direction: West
Tomorrow
Cloudy
Temperature: -0 C to 5 C
Wind Speed: 9 mph
Wind direction: North west
