II. Accountability

"... why is it that we think that - and we hope - that we can change CSC?"

Marie Andrée Bertrand

A. National

Recommendations

1. CAEFS joins both the Office of the Correctional Investigator and the Women's Legal Education and Action Fund (LEAF) in recommending that a commissioner of women's corrections be appointed to govern all matters related to federally sentenced women, including the supervision of the wardens of the new regional prisons and the Kikawinaw of the Healing Lodge, and that such office be independent of the current Correctional Service of Canada, by reporting directly to the Solicitor General. CAEFS further recommends that the individual appointed come from outside the ranks of CSC, and preferably be a woman whose experience encompasses human service administration in areas that could include social services, education and health services, as well as the criminal justice system.

2. CAEFS further recommends that the head of women's corrections [or CSC, in the unfortunate event that 1. is not recommended] be part of a mandatory advisory body to be comprised minimally of individuals representing:

a) federally sentenced women, preferably at least
(i) two who are currently "serving prisoners", possibly elected from the chairs of the Sisterhood groups and Prisoners' Committees of the new prisons and the Healing Lodge, and
(ii) two who are formerly imprisoned federally sentenced women, these individuals could be representatives of self-organized former prisoners, such as Strength in Sisterhood (SIS) thereby being selected by former and/or serving prisoners;
b) the Office of the Correctional Investigator;
c) the Native Women's Association of Canada;
d) the Canadian Association of Elizabeth Fry Societies;
e) Black, visible minority and immigrant women's community(ies) (likely need more than one representative);
f) the Union of Solicitor General Employees.

This sort of advisory body was originally contemplated by the members of the Task Force on Federally Sentenced Women. Furthermore, although CSC did not choose to implement the national body recommended for the federally sentenced women's initiative, CSC does have a National Aboriginal Advisory Committee.

The CSC is mandated, by virtue of the provisions of s. 82(1) of the (CCRA) , to establish national, regional and local advisory committees. The members of the national body are all First Nations representatives external to the Correctional Service, whose mandate it is to advise the Commissioner, via his Corporate Advisor on Aboriginal Programs, with respect to issues related to CSC's work with aboriginal offenders. Moreover, as LEAF has established in its submissions in this regard, the need for a separately administered corrections system has long been discussed and advocated.

Recommendation

3. CAEFS recommends that this Commission propose that s. 82 similarly apply to the new national head of women's corrections, as well as the regional/institutional heads; CAEFS further recommends that s. 77 of the CCRA be amended to include a provision similar in principle to that of s. 82(1), whereby the sort of advisory committee recommended above, as well as regional advisory bodies, can be legislatively mandated, with a duty to report on a regular basis and issue a written report annually to the Solicitor General and the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Justice and Legal Affairs.

We would anticipate that the work of the national advisory committee would involve the provision of support and advice to the senior administrator of women's corrections. We would anticipate that such advice would primarily relate to the development of policy within the existing legislative framework, as well as suggestions for law reform. At the outset, the committee would undoubtedly need to focus upon the improvement of internal and external accountability mechanisms.

B. Regional

Recommendation

4. Pursuant to the foregoing, CAEFS further recommends that regional advisory committees, similar in composition to that proposed for the national body, be established for each of the new regional women's prisons, including the National Healing Lodge and the Burnaby Correctional Centre for Women.

These regional bodies could act as a governing board for each of the new prisons. As such CAEFS would recommend that each should include representation from at least the following groups:

1) federally sentenced women in the prison, as well as those in the community;

2) external individuals and organizations such as regional representatives of CAEFS, elders, the Native Women's Association of Canada and other First Nations, and community-based women's and other social justice groups;

3) representative(s) of the Black, visible minority and immigrant women's community(ies);

4) representatives of the Office of the Correctional Investigator, possibly the Investigators for the respective regions;

5) regional representatives of the Union of Solicitor General Employees;

6) individuals and/or groups with expertise in areas of particular interest or need (eg. issues related to violence against women, mental health, et cetera).

C. Institutional

CAEFS anticipates that this Inquiry will produce a thorough report and many useful recommendations. However, unless accountability mechanisms are established in order to maximize the likelihood that federally sentenced women will experience justice and fairness while in prison, the unfortunate reality is that their needs and concerns will once again disappear from public view once the work of the Inquiry is done. Furthermore, in these times of increasing political and socio-economic polarization and given the flagrant disregard for the law disclosed by CSC in evidence during Phase I, we anticipate even greater difficulty gaining full public exposure of future crises for federally sentenced women behind prison walls.

We recognize that there are some excellent, very dedicated and well-intentioned staff within the CSC who have valiantly tried to effect change in such areas as risk management and therapeutic programmes and services for federally sentenced women. Despite their best efforts, however, their work and words are too often finessed into bureaucratic rhetoric.

Recommendations

5. CAEFS accordingly supports the recommendations of the Correctional Investigator with respect to the need for the wardens of the new regional prisons to be held accountable for institutional adherence to the provisions of the CCRA, and that rates of conditional release and availability of relevant institutional and community programming to achieve successful community integration, be included as key variables in the evaluative process.

6. CAEFS further recommends that, commencing with the Exchange of Service Agreement (ESA) pertaining to the Burnaby Correctional Centre for Women, all ESAs between the federal and provincial/territorial governments be reviewed in order to ensure that the rights and entitlements of all federally sentenced women are provided and protected thereunder.

By virtue of an Exchange of Services Agreement between CSC and B.C.'s provincial corrections department, the provincially run Burnaby Correctional Centre for Women (BCCW) serves as the incarceral setting for federally sentenced women in the Pacific region. While the director of BCCW apparently continues to participate in national meetings with respect to federally sentenced women's issues, BCCW has been excluded from documentation regarding Task Force implementation matters by CSC since shortly after it became operational in 1991.

Recommendation

7. CAEFS further recommends that our organization be provided with the mandate and requisite resources, including the financial means, to conduct annual audits of institutional adherence to governing legislation and policy within each of the regional prisons for women, such audits to be submitted to the Solicitor General and the Standing Committee on Justice and Legal Affairs.

Table of Contents

Home