Social Reintegration
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CUSTODIAL AND NON-CUSTODIAL MEASURES Social Reintegration Criminal justice assessment toolkit 4 UNITED NATIONS OFFICE ON DRUGS AND CRIME Vienna CUSTODIAL AND NON-CUSTODIAL MEASURES Social Reintegration Criminal Justice Assessment Toolkit UNITED NATIONS New York, 2006 The designations employed and the presentation of the material in this publication do not imply the expression of any opinion whatsoever on the part of the Secretariat of the United Nations, the Secretariat and Institutions of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe, and the Belgian 2006 OSCE Chairmanship concerning the legal status of any country, territory, city or area or of its authorities, or concerning the delimitation of its frontiers or boundaries. This publication has not been formally edited. TABLE OF CONTENTS 1. INTRODUCTION TO THE ISSUE .................................................................................... 1 2. OVERVIEW: GENERAL AND STATISTICAL DATA ........................................................ 4 3. LEGAL AND REGULATORY FRAMEWORK................................................................... 6 3.1 CRIMINAL LEGISLATION ....................................................................................... 6 3.2 OTHER LEGISLATION AND RULES ...................................................................... 7 3.3. LAW REFORM......................................................................................................... 8 4. MANAGEMENT ................................................................................................................ 8 4.1 DIVERSION FROM PROSECUTION ...................................................................... 9 4.2 PRISON SERVICE................................................................................................. 10 4.3 PROBATION SERVICE / PROVIDERS OF COMMUNITY SUPERVISION.......... 13 4.4 NGOS, THE COMMUNITY, AND VOLUNTEERS.................................................. 14 5. REINTEGRATION IN THE COMMUNITY: DIVERSION AND ALTERNATIVES ........... 15 5.1 DIVERSION............................................................................................................ 15 5.2 ALTERNATIVES .................................................................................................... 16 6. PRISON AND REINTEGRATION................................................................................... 16 6.1 HEALTHCARE ....................................................................................................... 16 6.2 CONTACT WITH THE OUTSIDE WORLD............................................................ 17 6.3 PRISON REGIME .................................................................................................. 18 6.4 RESTORATIVE JUSTICE IN PRISON .................................................................. 22 6.5 TEMPORARY RELEASE DISPOSITIONS ............................................................ 22 6.6 OPEN PRISONS.................................................................................................... 24 6.7 HALFWAY HOUSES.............................................................................................. 24 7. POST-RELEASE REINTEGRATION.............................................................................. 25 7.1 EARLY-RELEASE SCHEMES: PAROLE AND REMISSION ................................ 25 7.2 POST RELEASE SUPPORT BY NGOS, AND THE COMMUNITY....................... 26 8. SPECIAL CATEGORIES ................................................................................................ 27 8.1 PRE-TRIAL DETAINEES ....................................................................................... 27 8.2 JUVENILES............................................................................................................ 28 8.3 WOMEN ................................................................................................................. 29 8.4 THE MENTALLY ILL .............................................................................................. 30 8.5 DRUG DEPENDENT OFFENDERS ...................................................................... 31 8.6 OVERREPRESENTED GROUPS ......................................................................... 33 9. COORDINATION, PARTNERSHIPS, AND POLICY FORMULATION .......................... 34 9.1 SYSTEM COORDINATION ................................................................................... 34 9.2 DONOR COORDINATION..................................................................................... 35 ANNEX A. KEY DOCUMENTS .............................................................................................. 39 ANNEX B. ASSESSOR’S GUIDE / CHECKLIST ................................................................... 40 Social Reintegration iii 1. INTRODUCTION TO THE ISSUE Social reintegration can be understood as the support given to offenders during re-entry into society following imprisonment. A broader definition, however, encompasses the period starting from prosecution to release and post-release support. In this latter sense, social reintegration of offenders includes efforts undertaken following arrest, to divert them away from the criminal justice system to an alternative measure, including a restorative justice process or suitable treatment. It includes imposing alternative sanctions instead of imprisonment, where appropriate, and thereby facilitating the social reintegration of offenders within the community, rather than by subjecting them to the de-socializing and harmful effects of prison unnecessarily. In addition, some of the measures imposed may include a condition to undergo treatment for an addiction, while others may include referral to an educational or personal development centre, or oblige offenders to undertake unpaid work beneficial to the community, on the understanding that, as well as being penalized, they are acknowledging and repaying the damage they have caused to the community by committing an offence. For those who are sentenced to imprisonment, it includes social rehabilitation in prison, which should start on the first day of sentence and continue into the post-release period. A range of rules included in international instruments relating to imprisonment is based on this understanding. The International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) states that the essential principle of the treatment of prisoners shall be their reformation and social rehabilitation (Art 10, 3). UN Standard Minimum Rules for the Treatment of Prisoners (SMR) make it very clear that the purpose and justification of a sentence of imprisonment is ultimately to protect society against crime, and that this end can only be achieved if the period of imprisonment is used to ensure, so far as possible, that upon returning to society the offender is not only willing but able to lead a law- abiding and self-supporting life (SMR, R.58). The guiding principles are set down in the second part of the SMR (R.56-64) and span the issues of security, classification, care and resettlement. Social reintegration in the prison setting refers to assisting with the moral, vocational and educational development of the imprisoned individual via working practices, educational, cultural, and recreational activities available in prison. It includes addressing the special needs of offenders, with programmes covering a range of problems, such as substance addiction, mental or psychological conditions, anger and aggression, among others, which may have led to offending behaviour. Reintegration encompasses the prison environment, the degree to which staff engage with and seek the cooperation of individual prisoners, the measures taken to encourage and promote contact with family, friends and the community, to which almost all prisoners will one day return. It also refers to opportunities provided for prisoners’ gradual re-entry into society, such as furloughs (home leave) and half–way houses. Post release reintegration refers to conditional release (parole), which is a measure designed to enable offenders’ planned and gradual transition from prison to life outside. It also includes all social, psychological and other support provided to former prisoners after release by various agencies and organizations. Social reintegration is not an issue that can be resolved by legislation and institutions alone, however. The families of offenders, their immediate circle of friends, and the community have a fundamental role to play in assisting the offenders' return to society and supporting ex-offenders in rebuilding their lives. Research indicates that having strong family support is one of the most important factors contributing to successful rehabilitation, together with gaining steady employment. Successful treatment for drug addiction and desistance from returning to former drug circles is another key issue for many, and here family support is crucial. Probation services, where they exist, or similar bodies, have a key function in all of these areas – helping ex-offenders rebuild their relationships with their families, with finding a job, encouraging professional treatment for problems such as drug addiction and in general enabling a positive life strategy. But success, to a large extent, depends on community support; and in countries where a Social Reintegration 1 probation service does not exist (which will be in a majority of cases in developing countries) the role of other organizations of civil society is central. Unfortunately,