Transcript Social Rehabilitation and Reintegration of Offenders in Uganda

SOCIAL REHABILITATION
AND REINTEGRATION OF
OFFENDERS IN UGANDA
Inception ,Rationale, Best Practices and
Lessons Learned.
Paper Presented by: Hasiyo Adams (SWRO)
UNAFRI ON 20TH JANUARY 2012
Introduction
• Social rehabilitation refers to the process of restoring an
offender over time to a position of acceptable behavior ,
attitude and practices.
• It is aimed at restoring the offender’s social functioning
abilities so that one can have a productive , responsible ,
law abiding and meaningful life after serving a term in
prison
• It is a social because ,like in almost all rehabilitation , the
family and community has to be involved to ensure its
success.
• Social Reintegration refers to the process of preparing the
prisoner for the transition from life in prison to the
community after release.
• It follows Social Rehabilitation.
• As a process it involves several stages, resources and
different stakeholders to successfully carry it out.
• Most activities take place in the community.
Inception of the programme
• The programme began in 1994 as a response to the high
rate of recidivism of 47%.
• The programme started as a joint initiative between
Uganda Prisons Service(UPS) and the United Nations
African Institute for Prevention of Crime and Treatment of
Offenders.(UNAFRI)
• The programme was christened “ From Prison Back
Home”
Rationale for the Programme
• To reduce the rate of recidivism in Uganda Prisons
Service
• To decongest prisons through ensuring that the above
objective is met
• To sensetise the community about prisons operations.
• To reconcile the offenders with the community i.e relatives
, friends and victims
Rationale con’td
• To resettle discharged prisoners in the local communities
as law abiding responsible citizens.
Best Practices
A best practice is a method or technique that has
consistently shown results superior to those achieved with
other means, and that is used as a benchmark.(Wikipedia )
• Adequate preparation before starting the exercise.
• Involvement of all social actors in the process .
• Putting the inmate at the centre of his social rehabilitation
and reintegration.
• Preparation of both the inmate and the community of his
destination on the impending release.
• Documentation of every process for reference.
• The necessary recourse to the needle logic.
Best Practices cont’d
• Active engagement of the prisoner six months before
release.
Lessons Learned
• Involvement of local communities in the whole
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rehabilitation process is vital.
Social reintegration is a process that is built on adequate
preparation of offenders, local communities and victims.
Inmates internal reconciliation is a prerequisite for
initiating mediation and restorative justice processes.
Use of mediation and reconciliation techniques
Taking into account inmates rehabilitation needs is very
essential.
Conclusion
Social rehabilitation and reintegration programme is very
important in making Uganda Prisons Service relevant to its
existence as a Department of government. As explicitly put
in the Strategic Investment Plan II, Social Rehabilitating
inmates and ensuring that they are properly re-integrated in
their communities is key to securing a crime free
environment.
END.
• BONNE ANNEE !