Agenda Item Five
Ways and Means of Enhancing the Rehabilitation
Function of Corrections in NepalDr. Meen B. Poudyal Chhetri
Beijing, PRC. Under Secretary
Ministry of Home Affairs, Nepal.1. Background
In a country where the criminal justice system does not function well, the people can not enjoy the benefits of democracy. The essence of democracy is to provide justice impartially, while penal reform is an indispensable part of good governance. Institutions related to criminal justice system should be guided by the principles of rule of law, justice and human rights. Moreover, they must be sensitive to the protection of people's human rights and respect the people's right to live with dignity. It is high time to realize that the responsibility of each State is to establish and maintain a fair, responsible, ethical and efficient criminal justice system.
The prisons of the world need to be reformed. They are overcrowded, ill-equipped, ill-managed and pathetic places. They dehumanize all those who are inside them, the prisoners as well as the prison authorities. For that reason, the prisons need to be reformed. The reform must benefit all, especially the deprived and underprivileged prisoners. In most countries, the majority of prisoners are in remand with no access to legal counseling. Thus, the prisons and prisoners are being isolated and neglected from society. They lack effective and timely monitoring and supervision. Although the United Nations Standard Minimum Rules for the Treatment of Prisoners constitute the basic principles and standards to be implemented everywhere in the world, in most prisons, physical condition, cleanliness of the kitchen, sanitation and personal hygiene are poor.
In view of the above, it is desirable that the prison activities shall focus on helping prisoners to resettle in the community after the prison sentence has been served. The prison rules and regimes should not limit the prisoner's freedoms, external social contacts and possibilities for personal development. The prison rules and regimes should be conducive to adjustment and integration in the society. It should be ensured that the prisons are safe for prisoners, prison personnel and the community. Even among the prison inmates it is the poor and the marginalized prisoners that are the most neglected. Therefore, the three most important criminal justice agencies, i.e. the police, courts and prisons need reform and better coordination among them to meet the needs of social order and justice.
There is no clear national standard on the prison system. Hence, a clear national standard on prison management, privileges and right of prisoners and the reforms should be formulated and disseminated. There should also be provisions for orientation program for prisoners on prison life and prisoner's rights.
The Tenth United Nations Congress on the Prevention of Crime and the Treatment of Offenders held in Vienna in April this year declared that -"adequate prevention and rehabilitation programmes are fundamental to an effective crime control strategy, and that such programmes should take into account social and economic factors which may make people more vulnerable to, and likely to engage in criminal behaviour." The Congress also proclaimed to "encourage the development of restorative justice policies, procedures and programs that are respectful of the rights, needs and interests of victims, offenders, committees and all other parties." It proves the strong commitment of the United Nations towards the rehabilitation function of corrections.
2. The Correctional Treatment of Offenders
The prisons have always been considered as places of detention to protect the society from the offenders. Therefore the prisons have been perceived as one of the means of security. In every country prisons are a low-priority. In poor countries where three fourths of the prison population is comprised of poor and powerless people, prisons are seen as not worth the time, energy and resources needed to improve them. The prisons are used even for petty offences, as a punishment of first instance rather than last resort. However, with the passage of time a rehabilitative approach was adopted when it was realized that the prison, solely as a tool, was expensive.
The main objective of punishment is to resocialize offenders and reintegrate them back into society as self-supporting, law-abiding citizens. Therefore, the offenders are not punished only to deter crime and protect the society from the dangerous criminals.
For the purpose of correcting and enlightening prisoners, correctional education is necessary so that they may return to society as law-abiding citizens. While in prison there must be sufficient work inside the prison to keep all prisoners actively employed. Prison work is not only to fulfill the prisoners' willingness to work but also to give them vocational skills for their rehabilitation.3. Ways and Means to Rehabilitate the Prisoners
Rehabilitation is a kind of measure to attain the objective of punishment by which the society and the offender is benefited if the offender reformed. Hence any punishment should be formulated to be constructive and not dehumanizing in order to avoid getting the offender back into the prison. Thus, instead of only isolating and punishing the offender, prisons should also turn into a correction house and serve as a place of education and learning some skills so that the offenders could easily adjust in the society after release. Social agencies also should be asked to assist the staff of the correctional institution to this end. Rehabilitation of prisoners is essential both by way of damage reduction and constructive preparation for life after release.
While talking about various ways and means of enhancing the rehabilitation function of corrections, restorative justice programmes can be one of the important tools to rehabilitate the offenders. British criminologist Tony Marshall has defined restorative justice as a process whereby all parties with a stake in a particular offence come together to resolve collectively how to deal with the aftermath of the offence and its implications for the future. Under this programme three ways can be adopted, viz., victim offender mediation, community conferencing and peacemaking circles. There are two other programmes, viz., restitution and community service, which are potentially restorative outcomes because they can help to implement the agreements made in the course of the above mentioned restorative processes. Quoting Howard Zehr, Daniel W. Van Ness states in his paper on "Restorative Justice Around the World" - "restorative justice is a theory of justice that has grown out of experience. It has been informed by indigenous and customary responses to crime, both those of the past and those used today. Its modern development probably began in response to the first victim offender mediation programmes developed in the mid-1970s in Canada. These programmes started as an alternative to probation for young offenders and expanded into pre-sentence programmes that allowed the victim and offender to construct a sentencing proposal for the judge's consideration. It was assumed that offenders would benefit from this exposure to the needs of the victim, and that this would reduce recidivism and increase the likelihood of restitution being completed. What was not expected was that crime victims would also benefit from this approach, reporting higher satisfaction levels than with traditional court processes".
In this way, restorative justice has become a world-wide movement and in many countries it is one of several competing approaches to crime and justice that are regularly considered in courts and legislatures. Restorative justice programmes have been found effective in many countries like North America, Europe, New Zealand, Australia, South Africa and some Asian countries.
Meditation - "Vipasana" has been found as another very effective tool to rehabilitate the prisoners in some prisons of Nepal and India. Meditation, in the form of "Vipasana," is one of the methods to elevate the inner moral and spiritual consciousness in the human mind. This method of correction is specially based on the philosophy of Buddhism. This method has been practiced in Nepal and India and is becoming popular day by day. It has been found to be a very effective tool to rehabilitate the offenders. Since this kind of practice prevails only in Nepal and India, it needs to be advocated all over the world.
Besides the above two programmes fine, probation, parole, halfway house and the community service order are being practiced in some countries, especially the developed once, for the treatment of offenders outside of the prisons. However, those measures have not yet been fully successful, particularly in the underdeveloped countries, for want of sufficient resources and poor management. So, practical and interesting programmes like restorative justice programme and meditation have to be launched for the rehabilitation of the offenders.
4. Early Release
Since the main aim of imprisonment is to reform the offender, it is desirable that any offender whose moral re-generation has been sufficiently effected should be considered for early release. The offender's conduct in the prisons must be satisfactory because good conduct is a very important criterion which allows for access to all treatment programmes culminating in the consideration for early release. Basically good conduct and industry are the basis for an early release. Early release is, in fact, a mechanism for overcrowding reduction. The most significant criterion for early release is the low probability of recidivism and low risk to the society from the offender's side.
However, any early release measure without proper planning or preparation and the acceptance of the community should not be encouraged as this practice violates the principle of rehabilitation of offenders as well as prevention of crime. It is not always true that early release is the best approach with every inmate because there are some offenders who are incorrigible and should remain in prison for prolonged periods.
5. The context of Nepal
Though a well organized and written document on rehabilitation of the prisoners could not be found in Nepal, rehabilitation and pre-release training have been practiced in Nepal in various forms. establishment of schools, small scale and cottage industries, recreation facilities, meditation centers and temples in the major prisons of Nepal are playing a very important role in the rehabilitation of prisoners. Please see Appendix 1 and 2 for the facts and figures and organizational structure relating to Nepalese prisons.
5.1. Schools: There are seven schools in five prisons of Nepal. The education programmes range from basic literacy to the high school level. Young prisoners are likely to be more enthusiastic and receptive to education than adults. However, there is no mandatory literacy programme; it is voluntary. All prisoners are entitled to go to school. However, young prisoners and the dependant children of the prisoners are highly encouraged to go to school. The prisoners have also ample opportunities to study privately. Some of them have even graduated as a private examinee. Furthermore, educated prisoners can become teachers in the prison school and they are granted a 2 months remission for each year's teaching.
5.2. Small Scale and Cottage Industries: There are small scale and cottage industries in four major prisons of Nepal where the prisoners can work if they so wish. In addition, there are some small scale enterprises in most prisons of the country where the prisoners can work. They also get reasonable remuneration for their work. More importantly, they get a 2 months remission for each year's work.
5.3. Recreation Facilities : In the major prisons of Nepal, there exist facilities for recreation in the form of sports and cultural programmes. These include games like table tennis, volleyball, football, badminton, chess, carom, etc. Cultural programmes are organized and participated for and by the prisoners. Though all these facilities may not be provided in the smaller prisons, some indoor games and cultural programmes are being enjoyed by the prisoners.
5.4. Meditation Center : In Nakkhu prison of Lalitpur, Nepal, meditation techniques have been introduced basically for the narcotic drugs abusers. However, other inmates can also participate. So the prisoners nowadays preach peace, love and understanding. Hundreds of inmates meditate daily. The meditation center is like a school. It has specified curricula and extracurricular activities as well. They sing, dance, play and work in the garden after meditation. It looks like their violent instincts have been supplanted by an almost spiritual serenity. Thus meditation has helped to calm the agitated minds of the inmates. It has drastically changed their way of thinking. Most of the inmates say that they have found deeper freedom and peace in their mind. The inmates are mellowed out by learning meditation
5.5. Religious Centers : In almost all prisons of Nepal there are religious centers like temple, church, mosque and so on or, at least a particular place to pray. Such religious centers definitely help to mellow out the inmates and realize their guilt. It has also been found that many prisoners who never visit temples outside used to visit the temples in the prison.
5.6. Remission: Similar to the practice in some other countries, remission is another important tool of the correction system in Nepal which is also a part of rehabilitation. As a means of encouraging good conduct and industry, the convicted prisoners are eligible for release after serving 50 to 60 percent of their term of imprisonment, if they exhibit good conduct. The prisoners who work as school teacher, watchman, head prisoner and deputy head prisoner at the prison shall get a remission of 1 to 2 months per year. Remission is being granted by His Majesty the King each year on special occasions like His Majesty's Birth Day, Constitution Day and Democracy Day. However, those prisoners who are imprisoned for smuggling, rape, girls trafficking, drug trafficking and escaping from the prison are not granted such remission.
6. Conclusion
Crime causes divisions among people and within communities resulting in profound harm. Crime causes harm, though in some cases, its genesis may lie in the injustices inflicted upon the potential criminals. After getting punishment and being into the prison, the offenders realize that they have broken the law. Upon facing the people and society after release, they then realize how their actions have affected others. An effective rehabilitative function of corrections is to contribute towards strengthening the society in order to prevent further crimes.
The dignity of prisoners should not be curtailed or diminished on being convicted of a crime. As a matter of fact, prisons are for reform and rehabilitation; not for torture, deterrence and punishment, as it was in the past. Therefore, effective and proactive programmes need to be formulated to protect the rights and dignities of prisoners on the one hand and reforming and strengthening the rehabilitation programs on the other. Henceforth, it is necessary and desirable to arrive at a situation where the offender as well as the victim would be drawn towards a future in which both can feel free and forget the past.
Imprisonment is, by virtue of the deprivation of liberty, a punishment in itself. Therefore attempts should be made to make the life of prisoners better in the prison with concomitant efforts to lessen the period of imprisonment. For this, innovative rehabilitation programmes should be launched
The State and its institutions exist to serve the society. A prison is also a part of the society. Therefore, prison service has to be a specialized and professionalized service. There is also the need of training to the prison personnel and transparency in prison administration. People's participation, Non Governmental Organizations (NGOs) involvement and media support should be encouraged in the application of non-custodial measures. Special focus has to be given on the alternatives to imprisonment like Remission, Pardon, Licenses, Deportation, Furlough, Extraordinary Programmes, Parole, Halfway House and so on, for minor offences to reduce the number of prisoners.
Although corrections need to be improved to a greater degree, some improvements have already been made nowadays. Communication facilities, social relations and after care services are also increasingly available. With regard to prison work and education, only a few countries offer such opportunity, which needs to be extended.
The mass media should create greater public awareness of corrections so as to change the perception of the people. Offenders should be provided with social assistance and opportunities to assimilate in the community to facilitate reintegration. Greater community involvement should be promoted in the management of Criminal Justice System in order to instill in the minds of offenders a sense of responsibility towards society.aba
REFERENCES・ Civil Code ("Muluki Ain") (1964), His Majesty's Government of Nepal, Ministry of Law & Justice, Kathmandu, Nepal.
・ Compensation Against the Torture Act (1996), His Majesty's Government of Nepal, Ministry of Law & Justice, Kathmandu, Nepal.
・ Local Administration Act (1971), His Majesty's Government of Nepal, Ministry of Law & Justice, Kathmandu, Nepal.
・ New Models of Accessible Justice and Penal Reform in Developing Countries (2000), Centre for Victims of Torture, Kathmandu, Nepal.
・ "Nirvana Behind Bars," an Article by Sudip Mazumdar in the Newsweek Magazine on 18 September 2000.
・ "Standard Minimum Rules for Non-Custodial Measures," Adopted by the General Assembly as resolution 45/110 on the recommendation of the Eighth Congress.
・ Plan of Action and Report on the Penal Reform in Nepal (2000), Center for Victims of Torture, Kathmandu, Nepal.
・ Police Act (1955), His Majesty's Government of Nepal, Ministry of Law & Justice, Kathmandu, Nepal.
・ Police Regulations (1993), His Majesty's Government of Nepal, Ministry of Law & Justice, Kathmandu, Nepal.
・ Prison Act (1963), His Majesty's Government of Nepal, Ministry of Law & Justice, Kathmandu, Nepal.
・ Prison Directory, 1996) His Majesty's Government of Nepal, Department of Prison Management
・ Prison Regulation, (1963), His Majesty's Government of Nepal, Ministry of Law & Justice, Kathmandu, Nepal.
・ Prison Visit Guidelines (2000), Center for Victims of Torture, Kathmandu, Nepal.
・ Public Security Act (1989), His Majesty's Government of Nepal, Ministry of Law & Justice, Kathmandu, Nepal.
・ Statistical Year Book of Nepal (1999), His Majesty's Government of Nepal, Department of Statistics, Kathmandu, Nepal.
・ The Constitution of Nepal (1990), His Majesty's Government of Nepal, Ministry of Law & Justice, Kathmandu, Nepal.
・ Task Force on Prison Management (1993), His Majesty's Government of Nepal, Department of Prison Management, Kathmandu, Nepal.
・ Van Ness D.W. (2000), "Restorative Justice Around the World," a Paper Presented at the United Nations Crime Congress: Ancillary Meeting, Vienna, Austria.
・ Verma J.S. (2000), "Penal Reform in South Asia," Key Note Address at the Regional Conference on Penal and Prison Reform and Access to Justice in South Asia, Kathmandu, Nepal.
・ "Vienna Declaration on Crime and Justice: Meeting the Challenges of the Twenty-first Century," the Tenth United Nations Congress on the Prevention of Crime and the Treatment of Offenders, Vienna, 10 to 17 April 2000.
Appendix - 2
ORGANIZATIONAL STRUCTURE OF THE MINISTRY OF HOME
Appendix - 1
SOME FACTS AND FIGURES RELATING TO NEPALESE PRISONS
・ Total budget allocated for the prison management for the Fiscal Year 2000/2001 is NRs. 129.425 million
・ NRs. 124.231 million has been allocated for the security personnel for the
same year.
・ NRs. 19,700.00 is spent per prisoner per annum.
・ There are 1915 security personnel and 658 administrative personnel in the prison management system of Nepal.
・ There are 5,843 prisoners in Nepal and the prisoner population ratio is 1:3887
・ To maintain discipline among the prisoners and keep the prison neat and clean, the jailer appoints a watchman (chaukidar), a head prisoner (naike) and assistant head prisoners (bhai naike) from among the prisoners considered to be of good character.
・ Meditation techniques are practiced in Nepalese prisons and are found to be an effective tool to rehabilitate the offenders.
・ There are seven schools in six prisons of Nepal. They range from primary to high school level. Young prisoners prefer and are encouraged to receive education. However, all the prisoners who are interested to get education can attend the prison school.
・ There are libraries in most of the prisons though many of them are very small in size mainly due to the lack of resources.
・ There are four small scale industries in four prisons of Nepal.
・ Prisoners are not required to work, if they do not intend to work.
・ Prisoners have access to radio and newspapers. In some prisons where electricity facility prevails they also have access to television.
・ Medical facility is available. Those who require specialist treatment are transferred to well equipped hospitals.
・ There are temples to pray in almost all the prisons.
・ Women are allowed to keep their babies with them.
・ Prisoners are allowed under necessary supervision to communicate with their families and reputable friends at regular intervals, both by correspondence and by receiving visitors.
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