Sharing: Visiting Prison in Malang

Seminarian Adi, CM usually visits “Lembaga Pemasyarakatan Kelas IIA Malang,” an institution centre for women, so I asked him to arrange a visit for me during my trip to Malang.

          Seminarians Adi, CM, Daniel, CM and I registered at the centre using our identity card to meet two Indonesian and a Chinese inmates.  One ID can meet one inmates but we can meet together.  After waiting for a while, we were called to go inside the centre.  All men visitors are physically checked while all women visitors are stamped on their arm and given a card number to be worn on the neck.   We should leave our shoes and wear provided slippers before entering the visiting room.     

          The visiting room was full when we arrived.  It’s an Eid season so there were more than 50 persons in the visiting room, all sat on the floor except the two officers and two shopkeepers.   There are tables and chairs available for regular season.  The visitors can buy drink, snack and meal and then eat together with the inmates in the visiting room.  Simple meals three times a day were delivered to the inmates’ room.  Drink, snack and meal are available for sale at the centre (http://malangkota.go.id/2015/04/21/citra-negatif-lapas-harus-dirubah-dan-dihilangkan/).      

          The inmates can get income by making handicraft to be sold on the center’s shop, which is open for public.  

          I talked with the Chinese inmate most of the time in Putonghua.  She promise to contact me in Hong Kong when she goes back to Hong Kong.  She can speak a little bit of Indonesian as she has been in the centre for more than two years.  She and her husband were baptized during their stay in another centre.  They were grateful for our visit.

          I am grateful for this opportunity to visit prison in Indonesia for the first time as well as the opportunity to meet several friends in Malang: Ghebre Mikhael CM community, Fr. Agus, SVD and two classmates at Bogor Agricultural University Mrs. Utami and Mrs. Cici.       

Jombang, July 30, 2015

Sr. Anastasia B. Lindawati, M.M.

Let’s do simple things with simple love to make God’s love visible