The diagram illustrates the process by which natural rubber is obtained from rubber trees and prepared for sale to manufacturers.
Overall, there are ten main stages, beginning with the collection of liquid latex from the trees and ending with the export of finished bales. The process also includes a quality check that divides the rubber into two grades.
First, a diagonal cut is made in the bark of each tree at dawn, so that latex runs down into a cup, from which it is collected four hours later. The liquid is then poured through a sieve to remove dirt and bark, after which it is mixed with water and a weak acid in tanks. Over a period of 12 to 18 hours, the mixture gradually sets into soft slabs.
These slabs are squeezed between rollers into sheets 3 millimetres thick, washed and then dried in a smokehouse at 60°C for four days. Once dry, the sheets are inspected and graded. Low-grade sheets are shredded into crumb rubber for less valuable goods such as floor mats, whereas high-grade sheets are pressed into 111-kilogram bales and exported to factories that make tyres and gloves.
Crime is a concern in every society, but there is little agreement on how best to reduce it. Some people favour longer prison sentences, whereas others believe that education and job training achieve more. In my view, although prison has an essential role, education and training are the more effective long-term solution.
Supporters of tougher sentences have a clear logic. An offender who is in prison cannot commit further crimes against the public, so longer terms directly reduce offending for as long as they last. Severe penalties may also deter potential criminals, who must weigh the risk of losing many years of freedom. In addition, for serious violent offences, a long sentence reflects society’s sense of justice and shows victims that the harm done to them has been taken seriously.
Nevertheless, prison on its own does little to address why people break the law. Many offenders come from backgrounds of poverty, poor schooling and unemployment, and a spell behind bars changes none of these circumstances; indeed, prison can strengthen links with other criminals and make honest work even harder to find afterwards. Education and vocational training tackle these root causes. Prisoners who gain qualifications or a trade have a realistic alternative to crime on release, and such programmes generally cost far less than keeping someone locked up year after year. Investment in schools and youth services in deprived areas can also stop young people drifting into crime in the first place.
On balance, I believe the two approaches should complement each other, with the emphasis firmly on education. Dangerous individuals must be removed from society to protect the public, but for most offenders, a longer sentence merely postpones the next crime. Giving people the skills to build a lawful life is, in the end, the surest way to make communities safer.