This is the forerunner of, hopefully a series of profiles of some ot those political prisoners currently incarcerated in Northern Ireland’s prisons. The first of these offers an insight into Mark, a Portadown man currently held in Maghaberry. He has served five months of a five year sentence.
Name: Mark
DOB: 3rd April 1975
Home: Portadown
Sentence: 5 Years
Employment: Worked as part of a family business and luckily the job is secure for when he is eventually released.
Daily Routine: Mark attends the gym four days a week each session lasting an hour and a half. he also avails of cardio-vascular sessions in the wing recreation room. This is in the form of using a rowing machine, a static bicycle or cross trainer. At present he attends a restorative justice class where he studies and compares restorative practices from here and other places like Bosnia/Yugoslavia. Once a week he also attends English classes.
Typical day: Doors unlocked at 08:15 and mark prepares for either a visit ti the gym or recreation room. Lunch is served at 12:00 and this coincides with a lock up from 12:30-2:00 pm. If there are no gym periods mark would occupy his time by either studying, reading or chatting with one of his friends on the wing. The last meal of the day is served at around 4:00 pm. which is usually followed by a short period of rest before a joint training session with a friend a couple of times a week. The routine varies at the weekend as unlock is later–at 09:15. he normally has a family visit each Saturday and regularly attends church each Sunday. On weekend days lock up occurs at the earlier time of 5:30 pm. As part of a routine carried out by all prisoners on the wing cells and wings are cleaned daily withmaterials provided by the authorities.
Interests: Much of Mark’s spare time is spent reading–he was a wide and varied interest. He is particularly interested in local history and at present is reading ” A History of Ulster” by Jonathon Bardon but is also partial to James Patterson novels. With a CD player in his cell he is always able to listen to music–current playlist includes The Stone Roses and The Lumineers. Since the start of his sentence mark has mastered the rudiments of chess and challenges a friend whenever they have the time.
Attitude to Current Political Situation: ” I think our Unionist leaders would need to get back to listening to the voters rather than trying to score points with “wishy washy” Nationalists. Our people would also need to wake up and seriously challenge Sinn Fein at the ballot box. I do believe that in the area where I live, the DUP couldnt do enough for you.
Upon Release: Mark chaired a local Somme Association and worked extremely hard in trying to educate young people about the history and especially the sacrifices made at home and abroad by our forefathers. sacrifices which ensure the freedom that we all now take for granted. He hope to go back to this type of work upon release.
Has Prison Changed Mark? At 37 years old this is Mark’s first experience of the prison system although he had previously worked extensively with ex-prisoners and was well informed about their experiences. The biggest thing for Mark is missing his family but from that perspective he is trying to make the best of a bad situation. He is slowly learning to adapt and manage different situations. A plus at the moment is the fact that Mark is in a position to re-educate himself to a certain dgree. He had left school before he sat GCSE’s and jnow has the opportunity to redress that. His hope is to leave prison with qualifications he otherwise would never have gained.
