Effects of incarceration

/in /by

Effects of incarceration
on prisoners’ families

Mid-Dlam ghad-Dawl compiled the following lists from its actual experience, over a 10-year span, with prisoners’ families. They are presented here without any particular order.

 

Effects on prisoners’ families in general:

  • Incarceration is experienced as if some member of the family died
  • The roles within the family change
  • Personal interest in the members of the same family increases
  • Other members of the extended family begin to get involved in the life of the nuclear family
  • Free time diminishes (due to new and added commitments)
  • The children (of an incarcerated parent) end up with no role-figures (if this, incidentally, is not for the better)
  • The children (of an incarcerated parent) show signs of instability
  • The children (of an incarcerated parent) show a lack of ethics in their sexual behaviour (and sometimes desire to leave the home early)
  • The children (of an incarcerated parent) show symptoms of problematic behaviour, such as:
    • Act like little children;
    • Do things that children much younger do (such as wetting their bed, sucking their thumb, etc.);
    • Argue a lot;
    • Clink to the parent at home (in such a way that they try not to loose him/her from sight, due to the fear of not seeing him/her again);
    • Began to be aggressive;
    • Cause trouble more frequently;
    • Fear being with people they do not know very well; and
    • Become restless.
  • Mothers (of incarcerated sons or daughters) feel cheated or robbed of their children.
  • Mothers (of incarcerated sons or daughters) experience great fear (or anxiety) from what might happen to their kids in goal (conscious that the prisons change people, generally for the worse)
  • Increase in religious faith (and in God)
  • Members of the extended family consider support given to the prisoner (from the nuclear family) as irrational or ridiculous

Effects on interpersonal relationships:

  • Parents (of incarcerated sons or daughters) begin to idealise their incarcerated kids (due to the fact of their separation)
  • Love between the non-incarcerated members and the person in goal increases
  • Increase in the desire that the familiar love with the prisoner does not ever come to an end
  • The non-incarcerated members develop a sense of guilt, as if they had some responsibility in the crime of their relative (or as if they could have done something to avoid the crime, and did not)
  • They also sometimes develop a sense of shyness before their relative- prisoner
  • They experience a sense of shame while in public due to their blood-relation to a prisoner
  • They experience a conflict of sentiments (anger/mercy; hate/love) towards others, especially their incarcerated relative
  • They find some difficulty during visits to their incarcerated relative, in such a way that they mentally plan the meeting, and consciously decide beforehand what to mention to him/her and what to pass by in silence

Effects on the finances of prisoners’ families:

  • A salary is lost (if the incarcerated part is a parent)
  • A considerable increase in expenses due to things that will have to be taken constantly to the prisons
  • Less pocket-money for sons and daughters
  • Less spending-money for the family
  • Payment of exuberant fees to lawyers
  • Sometimes the family has to pay also the fines imposed by the courts on their incarcerated relative (so s/he would not do extra periods in goal)

Effects on the relationship of prisoners’ families with institutions:

  • Parents (of incarcerated sons and daughters) feel frustrated due to their sense of powerlessness before the destiny of their kids
  • The members of the family avoid talking about the incarceration of their relative due to the fear of bad effects — goal, incarceration, and the like, become taboo subjects
  • The day, and the moment itself, of the declaration of the prison sentence of their relative becomes a trauma for the close relations of the sentenced
  • The family feels completely lost in the judicial bureaucratic system
  • The family feels disappointed with the system
  • The family looses heart when they realise that their sons and daughters are in the hands of an unfeeling institution or system, such as the courts and the prisons
  • The children (of incarcerated parents) begin to show lack of respect towards any authority
  • The children (of incarcerated parents) show signs of academic proficiency, especially if they are of a young (primary-level) stage

Social effects on prisoners’ families:

  • The family is discussed in public
  • A sense of shame
  • A feeling that the members of the family are somehow guilt too of the crime committed
  • A possibility that fear of the “criminal” is also extended to the whole family
  • A sense of isolation from neighbours (which, though real, may not be altogether realistic) due to the fact that the family of a prisoner is considered a degradation for the neighbourhood
  • Isolation of the children (of incarcerated parents) due to the fact that they are considered unworthy of other “normal” children
  • The children (of incarcerated parents) begin to show some anti-social behaviour
  • Sometimes other members of the community consider support given to the prisoner (from his/her nuclear family) as irrational or ridiculous

 

 

 

Verzjoni bil-Malti

 

Effetti ta’ l-inkarcerazzjoni
fuq il-familja tal-prigunier

Mid-Dlam ghad-Dawl ghamlet din il-gabra mill-esperjenza taghha, twil mal-10 snin, mal-familji tal-prigunieri. Il-gabra hija pprezentata hawnhekk minghajr xi ordni partikulari.

 

Effetti fuq il-familja b’mod generali

  • Il-karcerazzjoni titqies bhallikieku miet xi hadd fil-familja.
  • Jinbidlu r-rwoli tal-membri tal-familja.
  • Jizdiet l-istress fil-membri tal-familja.
  • Fil-hajja tal-familja jibdew jigu nvoluti wkoll membri ohra mill-familja estiza.
  • Jonqos il-hin liberu (minhabba impenji godda u zejda).
  • L-ulied (ta’ xi genitur inkarcerat) jisfaw minghajr role-figures (sakemm ma jkunx ahjar ghalihom).
  • L-ulied (ta’ xi genitur inkarcerat) juru nuqqas ta’ stabbiltà.
  • L-ulied (ta’ xi genitur inkarcerat) juru laxkezza fl-etika sesswali taghhom (u xi kultant xewqa ta’ tluq kmieni mid-dar).
  • L-ulied (ta’ xi genitur inkarcerat) juru sintomi ta’ agir problematiku, bhal: jagixxu b’mod immatur; jaghmlu affarijiet li generalment jaghmlu tfal izghar minnhom (jaghmlu f’soddtuhom, jerdghu subghajhom, u l-bqija); jarguentaw hafna; jiddendlu mal-genitur mhux inkarcerat (b’mod li ma jafdax in-nuqqas taghha/tieghu); isiru aggressivi; joholqu l-inkwiet ta’ spiss; jibzghu joqghodu ma’ nies li ma jafuhomx sew; u ma jkollhom kwiet imkien.
  • Ommijiet (ta’ wlied inkarcerati) jhossuhom cheated jew misruqaminnuliedhom.
  • Ommijiet (ta’ wlied inkarcerati) jhossu bizgha (jew anzjetà) akbar fuq dak li se jsirminnuliedhom (konxji hafna li l-habs jibdel in-nies: ghall-ahjar? ghall-aghar?).
  • Zieda fil-fidi (u f’Alla).
  • Appogg lill-habsi mill-parti mhux inkarcerata titqies irrazzjonali jew redikolaminnmembri ohra tal-familja estiza.

Effetti fuq ir-relazzjonijiet interpersonali

  • Il-genituri (ta’ wlied inkarcerati) jibdew jidealizzaw lil uliedhom (minhabba li jkunu ’l boghod minnhom).
  • Tikber l-imhabba bejn il-parti mhux inkarcerata u l-habsi.
  • Tikber ir-rieda li r-rabta (familjari, ta’ mhabba) mal-habsi tibqa’ shiha (u ma tispiccax).
  • Sens li l-parti mhux inkarcerata ghandha xi sehem fil-htija u r-responsabbiltà tar-reat tal-habsi.
  • Sens ta’ misthija tal-parti mhux inkarcerata quddiem il-habsi.
  • Sens ta’ htija minhabba semplici assocjazzjoni (familjari) mal-habsi.
  • Konflitt ta’ sentimenti (rabja/hniena; mibgheda/imhabba).
  • Diffikultà fil-laqghat mal-habsi: il-laqgha mieghu tigi mentalment ippjanata; isiru decizjonijiet konxji ta’ x’ghandu jinghad lilu jew le.

Effetti fuq il-finanzi tal-familja

  • Tintilef paga (jekk genitur).
  • Zieda konsiderevoli ta’ spejjez ghall-habs.
  • Anqas flus ghall-ulied.
  • Hlasijiet kbar ghall-avukati.

Effetti fuq ir-relazzjoni tal-familja ma’ l-istituzzjonijiet

  • Il-genituri (ta’ wlied inkarcerati) jhossu frustrazzjoni gej mis-sens ta’ powerlessness quddiem id-destin ta’ wliedhom.
  • Il-membri tal-familja jibzghu jitkellmu dwar l-inkarcerazzjoni minhabba bizgha ta’ effetti hziena (il-habs, l-inkarcerazzjoni, jsiru taboo subjects).
  • Il-jum, u l-mument innifsu, tal-ghoti tas-sentenza johloq trawma fil-genitur/mara/ragel ta’ l-issentenjat.
  • Il-familja thossha mitlufa fis-sistema burokratika.
  • Il-familja thossha ddizappuntata mis-sistema.
  • Il-familja thossha taqa’ qalbha meta l-ulied jaqghu f’idejn istituzzjoni/sistema bierda.
  • L-ulied jibdew juru nuqqas ta’ rispett lejn kull awtorità.
  • L-ulied ikollhom nuqqas ta’ success akkademiku.

Effetti socjali tal-familja

  • Il-familja tibda tigi diskussa fil-pubbliku.
  • Sens ta’ misthija
  • Sens li l-membri tal-familja huma hatja wkoll.
  • Periklu kbir li l-bizgha mill-’kriminal’ tiga estiza wkoll ghall-familja kollha.
  • Sens ta’ izolament mill-girien (li, ghalkemm reali, jista’ ma jkunx realistiku) minhabba li l-familja tal-habsi titqies degradazzjoni tal-hâra (tan-neighbourhood).
  • Izolament ta’ l-ulied tal-habsi minhabba li ma jixirqux (unworthy) li t-tfal jaghmulha maghhom.
  • L-ulied jibdew juru attitudnijiet anti-socjali.
  • Appogg lill-habsi mill-parti mhux inkarcerata titqies irrazzjonali jew redikolaminnhaddiehor.