<
https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2025/sep/01/prion-phone-call-costs-made-it-hard-for-chris-to-stay-connected-to-his-family-advocates-say-they-should-be-free-ntwnfb>
"Figuring out the prison phone system was just one more thing Chris* had to do
once he got locked up.
“The [prison] officers don’t really help you at all,” he says. “They don’t tell
you nothing … You usually just ask one of the sweepers or someone like, ‘How do
I use it? What do I do here?’”
But there’s a bigger problem than a lack of help and information, Chris says:
the cost of phone calls made it very difficult to stay connected with his
family.
“It was real depressing,” he says. “Mum didn’t have much money at the time. And
the money that I had, I had to space out to make sure that I could call her at
least twice a week.
“Even though I wanted to call her more than that, I didn’t have the funds.”
Prison reform advocates argue the cost of calls in New South Wales correctional
facilities is prohibitive and risks isolating men and women further, which can
lead to more problems once they’re released.
The NSW Greens MP Sue Higginson is urging the Minns government to make phone
calls free for inmates to help their rehabilitation."
Cheers,
*** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/ Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/ Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/ Manager, Serious Cybernetics
