In the namelessness of the prison system, which disregards the individual person’s proper name and categorises all as inmates, it would be easy— very easy— for those condemned to custodial sentences to slide into dim dreams.
But, if by some chance one inmate slipped into such a dream in Blantyre Central Business District on Saturday, the incident might have gone unnoticed as smiles and excitement were the dominant marks on the faces of inmates from Chichiri Prison in Blantyre.
The inmates put their past behind and swept the streets from Clock Tower to Victoria Avenue, capping their activities on the day with a theatrical performance at Blantyre Market.
It was a day when, in a visible way, the namelessness encouraged by the prison system was set aside and inmates embraced costume.
And the sweeping exercise itself, despite its visibly physical nature, was only symbolic.
“We are imploring Blantyre residents to sweep crime out of Blantyre through our theme ‘Sweep crime in Blantyre’ and promote peace. So, the sweeping exercise was meant to invoke hope that, together, we can bring criminality to its proper end and
focus on positive things,” said MacArthur Matukuta, one of the organisers-cum-Solomonic Peacocks director.
However, the sweeping exercise should, in no way, be mistaken for the main dish on the day’s menu. It can, simply, be equated to soup because— in this case— it was merely furnishing the main dish, namely theatre, on the menu.
Solomonic Peacocks has joined hands with the Malawi Prisons Service (MPS) under an initiative dubbed ‘Theatre for Mindset Change’. And, as if sending home the message that it takes a whole city to stop criminals in their tracks, the cast can fill half a bus.
The cast has 22 serving prisoners, two ex-prisoners, eight prison wardens and 10 actors from Solomonic Peacocks.
“We are putting prisoners to good use by using them to shape society in a positive way. Prisoners have the experience [of living the life of a prisoner] and we [as Solomonic Peacocks] have the creative arsenal. Together, we can reduce crime through theatre,” said Matukuta.
Blantyre Market shoes vendor, Samson Kaliveni, said it was “interesting” to see prisoners take part in a campaign that reminds them of their dark past without letting such as an experience interfere with their theatrical performance.
“I think there is creativity and good will in our prisons. But, then, crime prevention requires more than words. It requires selflessness on the part of our leaders. Crime cases are bound to be high in a situation where the youth, as productive citizens of society, remain unemployed. Those who are self-employed, like me, also face challenges, most notably lack of space in markets like Blantyre Market,” said Kaliveni.
MPS spokesperson, Smart Maliro, recently told our sister paper, The Sunday Times, that the prison authorities embraced the idea of letting prisoners work with Solomonic Peacocks because no one— not even the wardens— feels happy seeing one more face, hands in cuffs, being escorted into a prison cell.
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