The latest Prisoners Abroad newsletter (pdf; 1.3MB) is now available to download from our website. As well as the usual letters poems and puzzles, this edition features the first batch of book reviews from our new reading group, a description of the transfer process from Japan to the UK, and a full colour 2010 calendar. However, the front page story is one mother’s account of discovering that her son had been arrested in Barbados

"That night I could not sleep, I felt sick, it felt as if I had a large lead weight in the pit of my stomach. All night long I was turning it over in my head what is going to happen to my son, I had no idea. The next day I went to work, but I couldn’t eat or concentrate properly. At around 4pm I received a call from my son’s mobile. Hello mum, he said. He then began to cry and said that he was on his way to court and that he would probably get a prison sentence. I was in total shock, I told him I would always be there for him that I loved him and would do all I could for him."