Opening the door to privatisation

The New South Wales Department of Corrective Services has threatened to sack a group of employees for comments that they made on Facebook, which it says are in contravention of the Public Services Employment and Management Act. The employees were discussing the issue of prison privatisation in the State.

So much for social media as a channel for individuals to express themselves! This issue raises the question: Should online activity be protected by the principle of Freedom Of Speech?

A follow up story by Crikey alledged that the Facebook activity was actually of a defematory and sexist nature but doesn’t refute the claim that prison officers are being threatened with discipline for voicing their anti-privatisation views.

Prison officers went on a 24 hour strike this week and held a rally outside Parliament house (with twelve rebel Labor MPs) in demonstration against the plans to privatise two prisons in NSW.

For a perspective on the moral and practical issues associated with prison privatisation check out this opinion piece by George Monbiot, which includes the following passage:

Only two groups want them built: ministers and the prison companies: they offer excellent opportunities to rack up profits. And the very nature of PFI, (private finance initaitive: a type of public/private partnership) which commits the government to paying for services for 25 or 30 years whether or not they are still required creates a major incentive to ensure that prison numbers don’t fall. The beast must be fed.

Tags: australia, facebook, Monbiot, NSW, prison officers