Aiding correction: Educating prisoners to help them reintegrate into society

Speakers call for concerted efforts from public sector, civil society.

MANSEHRA:

Speakers at the launch of an education programme for prisoners underscored the need for concerted efforts from the public sector and the civil society to help inmates become responsible and law-abiding citizens.

They were speaking at the launch of the Non-Formal Basic Education Programme for prisoners of District Jail Mansehra here on Monday. The programme has been initiated by the Human Development Organisation (HDO), a Hazara-based non-governmental organisation (NGO) working for the prevention of torture and rehabilitation of survivors of custodial abuse.

Speakers said that prisoners have always been neglected in our country, due to which, the ratio of relapse among inmates has been on the rise. They said the trend could be arrested by educating the prisoners, enhancing their self-esteem and inculcating in them respect for the law.

They, however, stressed that close coordination between the government and the civil society is imperative to accomplish this goal.

Haji Habibur Rehman Tanoli, a member of the Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (K-P) assembly from the Awami National Party, said there are various reasons, including economic and social factors, that land people in detention centres, but illiteracy is the chief among them.

The K-P assembly member and Executive District Officer Elementary and Secondary Education Umar Khan Kundi distributed books and stationary among the enrolled prisoners.

HDO Programme Assistant Adeel Ahmed said custodial abuse is rampant in Pakistan and is a contributing factor to the increase in poverty.

He underscored the need to rehabilitate jail inmates and said that his organisation has been providing prisoners with educational services, legal aid and physiological and psychological treatment to help them successfully reintegrate into the society.

He said his organisation annually provides free physiological treatment to over 6,000 deserving prisoners, while 500 torture victims are provided both physiological and psychological treatment free of charge.

Published in The Express Tribune, November 13^th, 2012.