22 February 2005
Windhoek — IN as much as the Ministry of Prisons and Correctional Services would like to rehabilitate criminal offenders, financial constraints have been identified as one of the major problems in the Ministry.
Deputy Commissioner of Prisons and Correctional Services John Nyoka indicated that correctional services has now become a knowledge-based career that involves the screening and analysis of inmates.
Based on that, there is need for more therapy-related programmes to be put in place but financial problems have made this impossible.
About 90 per cent of the inmates are said to be illiterate and that has equally resulted in rehabilitators finding it difficult to give proper lessons.
"We are now trying to train in the basics of literacy so that once they get the basics, they would be able to apply them when they reunite with society," he said.
Despite the illiteracy, Nyoka says there is a need to rehabilitate prisoners, especially those who commit "big crimes".
Every prisoner goes through intake analysis and based on what is screened, the kind of therapy needed for that particular prisoner is decided.
Therapy is categorised into three areas - high, medium and low risk.
Once a prisoner gets treatment, an observation follows as to whether that person is adapting to whatever therapy is given.
They are later sent on parole where they are re-integrated with society but still they are monitored for positivity.
"We need real offenders to be corrected. We need to concentrate on inmates who need treatment. We want when they go out there to be good people."
All this is done in fear that if prisoners are let loose into society the way they went into prison, they might recruit others, the Deputy Commissioner said.
Overcrowding is another problem identified in the ministry and thus efforts that would address this problem are in place. One way the ministry is doing this is by separating juveniles from prison cells where adults are housed.
Considering that the inherited prisons are not conducive enough for rehabilitation, a new prison at Farmscott in Tsumeb is under way. This would, according to Nyoka, include unit management.
A juvenile programme already exists at the Elizabeth Nepemba Institute in Rundu and there is still need for more programmes in order to have a rehabilitated society.
Another mechanism helping in the rehabilitation of prisoners is by involving prisoners in farming. For example, there is a farm at Divundu and another in Windhoek.
Nyoka further said that rehabilitation is a process and it was not until 1995 that the President emphasised the need for action otherwise rehabilitation was just a political slogan.
A need to work with people including communities using case management would ensure that most prisoners are rehabilitated and hence resulting in a better society.
Nyoka could not provide the figures of prisoners who have been rehabilitated so far but ended by saying that society would only see change in terms of rehabilitation of prisoners after two years from now.
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