By Carlena Knight
History was made in Antigua and Barbuda on Thursday morning with the swearing-in ceremony of the first ever ‘His Majesty’s Prison Visiting Committee’.
The body underwent a name change in the wake of the death of Queen Elizabeth II and the ascension of her eldest son, King Charles III.
The group chaired by Bishop Charlesworth Browne is enshrined in the country’s Constitution and is responsible for the welfare of all prisoners.
Observer media attended the brief ceremony and spoke with Bishop Browne about the historic occasion.
He explained that it was a moment of pride for him to become the first ever chairman of His Majesty’s Prison Visiting Committee.
“There’re so many things that I have done in my time that it is just like another responsibility, another role.
“I take every responsibility seriously, and it is like a new dispensation, but we are still intent on doing the very best we can … we are human rights defenders as well because prisoners, every prisoner, is a human being and that’s one of the things that we remember and keep in mind all the time,” Browne said.
Browne has been the committee’s head for eight years.
Deputy Governor General Sir Clare Roberts handed the members their new instruments of appointment, and charged the group with spearheading the fight for the rights and well-being of prison inmates.
He said that the rehabilitation of these men and women should be at the forefront of the minds of the committee.
Bishop Browne said there are many archaic laws the committee is pushing to change in that regard.
“You know, when we look at some of the laws, some of the requirements, some of the things that prisoners should or should not be subjected to are really archaic.
“We have been speaking to that for a long time now to make some changes, and changes have already been effected through the help of the Attorney General’s office, and the legal department is actually working on it right now as I speak,” Browne revealed.
The country’s lone penal facility was built in the mid-18th century and has constantly come under fire for its inordinately harsh conditions and overcrowding.
Work is underway on a multi-million-dollar expansion which aims to alleviate overcrowding and will see most cells fitted with flushing toilets and a basin.
It also includes a modern kitchen and administration block, plus water catchments to eventually facilitate running water throughout the institution.