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To Rehabilitate or Not: Challenges to
Reintegrating Inmates By: Roland Kallon 10 March, 2010  After
almost fourteen years of a devastating conflict in Liberia, “prison
rehabilitation” is hardly a priority for most Liberians; infrastructure
and man-power development seem to be more pressing matters. People are
more interested in tangible development projects (roads, schools, health
centers etc), something they can touch and see. To a large extent, most Liberians are not concerned about the state of the nation’s prisons or those who occupy them. They believe that doing time in prison is a well-deserved punishment for criminals. Yet, there is an underlying notion that prison reform and rehabilitation are key to the country’s transformation. Prisons in Liberia tend to be very overcrowded because of the slow pace of prosecution of cases. It is not unusual to find detainees are held for several months without access to due process of the law. One disturbing consequence of the state of Liberia’s prisons is that juvenile offenders sometimes share the same facilities with adults, who may be hardened criminals. Emmanuel Roberts is a case in point. A 17-year-old youth, Emmanuel was arrested in 2008 for allegedly committing murder. According to Emmanuel, he is innocent of the charges leveled against him and even claims that it was a friend of his who had actually stabbed someone during an altercation around his 72nd neighborhood in Paynesville. He is convinced that because his friend ran away after the incident, the police are using him as the “fall guy” because the brawl had resulted in death. He also claims because his mother did not have the money to hire a lawyer, he was given one by the Government who, according to him, was not convinced of his innocence. As a result, Emmanuel claims, he was sentenced to life imprisonment. His lawyer filed an appeal but since there is no one to push his paperwork, Emmanuel is languishing in jail at the Monrovia Central Prison without any indication of the progress of his appeal. “I didn’t kill anybody,” he said with tears in his eyes. Whether or not Emmanuel’s claim to innocence is true, the Liberian Government recognizes the need to human rights and the due process of inmates. It has taken steps to improve the conditions in Liberia’s prisons. Government has established a sitting magistrate at the Monrovia Central Prison to expedite the trial process and reduce time spent in pre-trial detention. It is clear that any hope of rehabilitation will require improved conditions at the prisons Prisons are hardly effective in rehabilitating offenders when the right measures are not put in place by authorities. Considering that inmates spend different lengths of time in prison, depending on their sentence, the approach to formulating programs for different groups of inmates is paramount for successful rehabilitation. One category of inmates that Government is very concerned about is juvenile offenders, like Emmanuel. Government is working on programs to provide counseling to enable these inmates to transition back into communities so that they can positively contribute to society again. Mr. Ali Sylla, a psychotherapist assigned to the Ministry of Youth and Sports, is charged with the daunting task of rehabilitating juveniles at the Monrovia Central Prison. His program, “Faces & Voices of Recovery,” is geared towards helping juveniles transition back into society. For the most part, these kids are isolated from friends and families and have completely lost touch with any form of support that might help in their transition. Along with his support staff, Mr. Sylla has the responsibility of reconnecting with these kids and preparing them for life outside the prison walls. For example, last week session included a volley ball match that got these kids really geared up! This very seemingly small measure of physical release of these kids on the part of Mr. Sylla and his team went a long way in opening some of them who barely participate during sessions that involved only talking. Besides psychological support, which is intended to increase the self-esteem and well-being of these problem kids, support from family and loved ones is a major factor in determining whether they will successfully transition into society or relapse into the vicious cycle of crime and violence leading to a return to prison shortly after their release. In order to achieve that level of success, friends and family should be included in counseling sessions as support networks, said Mr. Sylla. One major challenge that threatens to derail the entire process is funding. Presently, the Ministry of Youth & Sports does not have the necessary resources to move the “Faces & Voices of Recovery” program forward. One day a week is not enough for Mr. Sylla and his team to make the kind of impact that is necessary for these kids to begin the transition process. Psychotherapy alone is not enough to facilitate transition into society either. Additional programs are needed to bolster the efforts of Mr. Sylla and his team. Juveniles need learning tools such as reading and writing materials and structured recreation to stimulate their interest and to enable them to pick up where they left prior to their incarceration. But until the arrival of these educational programs and tools, Mr. Sylla has promised a more interactive initiative that would help these kids get the needed exercises that would stretch their stiffened limbs after been locked away for most of the week. The new program promises to pitch juveniles against the volunteer team which Mr. Sylla heads from the Ministry of Youth and Sports There would now be football and volleyball matches every Thursday, and the juvenile cell block is abuzz with prospects of showcasing what they are made of outside of crime and violence. |
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