Our Election Asks
Build homes not prisons
Prison does not make us safer
Prison abolition is both a strategy and a horizon. Abolition is a pragmatic approach to systems that have continued to prove themselves as failed projects. A common misconception is that our communities will be safe if we build more prisons and increase policing, but this does not work. This assumes that if we eventually remove enough people from society, then society’s problems will be solved. Rather, prison abolitionism is clear about the harms that prisons cause and perpetuate; about what will really keep our communities safe; and about what will create a more just and fairer society. Abolitionism asks us which we want to prioritise - punishment or change - given that punishment will not bring about the safety we want to see.
Ireland’s institutions of punishment are complex, so the process of beginning to dismantle those institutions and build something new is complex too. We are not suggesting an overnight fix, rather a change of policy direction and a re-orientation of our horizon. A single idea or new programme will not suffice. We envision this abolitionist manifesto for the General Election as crafting a three-legged stool. Each leg must be in place for the stool to fulfil its purpose. If a single leg is missing, the stool collapses.
For the upcoming election, our three ‘legs’ are:
Working together, each one will bring us forward towards a future where we don't rely on punishment, where we have fewer people in prison; and where we have communities that are flourishing rather than just surviving.
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End Prison Expansion
More prison spaces do not reduce overcrowding or make society a safer place. We want a moratorium on building new prison spaces. This means stopping the construction of new prisons, the reopening of previously closed prisons, and the provision of additional spaces in existing prisons. Prisons will not make us safer.
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Reduce Prison Population
Reduce the number of people in our severely overcrowded prisons. Immediately develop a national decarceration strategy with clear targets, timelines, robust oversight, reallocation of resources from prisons to health provision, public services and communities.
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Invest in communities
Prisons do not make communities safer. Investing in communities does. Prisons punish vulnerable people while directing essential financial resources away from communities. Instead of prison spaces, we need to redistribute wealth and income to provide universal public services, healthcare, housing, transport infrastructure and opportunities for living well. Support those who are practicing harm reduction in their communities.
