PRISONERS WELFARE SERVICES

INDRODUCTION & BACKGROUND

The number of people incarcerated in prisons around the world is on the rise. The world inmate population is roughly about 8 to 10 million people. This increase in prisoners numbers has resulted in severe or overcrowding of the prison and other retention facilities. The overall figures are difficult to estimate due to some countries refusal to disclose information about their penal facilities even such basic facts as a number of inmates held.

While conditions of detention vary greatly from country to country and facility to facility standard to most countries or shockingly low. Prisons and jails even in the riches and the most developed countries are plagued by severe overcrowding, detained physical infrastructure, a lack of medical care, guard abuse and corruption and prisoners and prisoner violence with the public primarily concerned about keeping prisoner locked up rather that about the conditions in which prisoners were confined, little progress has been made toward remedying these abuses. 

Shielded from the public view and populated largely by the poor, uneducated and politically powerless, prisons tend to remain hidden sides of human rights abuse.

WOMEN PRISONERS

Women offenders tend to commit less serious crimes than men and have a shorter criminal career. We cannot afford to overlook the impact of female offending on the victims of crime, nor can be afford to ignore the needs of women offenders.

Because women are in a small minority of the offending population the factors leading women to offend and re-offend have often been overlooked. We do not subscribe to the “all women offenders are victims “ rehurted nor to the equally misguided view that women offenders a lost cause we also reject any preferential treatment for women offenders research suggest that women are less likely than men to go to prison even within the same offence groups.

Our vision for women offenders in prison and prohibition services working effectively to stop them from re-offending and a network of a support for vulnerable women in the community, both to prevent them offending in the first place and to support the settlement of ex-offenders this  must be seen in context to overall efforts to tackle poverty, social exclusion, drug abuse, improving care for children and to bring about a fair society- makes a difference for women.

ABOUT THE PROGRAM

Prisoners Welfare Service is a project of the ‘Progress’ Peace and Human Rights Program. It works for promoting a better understanding of what prison is and what it does to people. It endeavors for the improvement and well being of the prisoners in the short term to the dismantling of the present prison system as a means of containment.

‘Progress’ believes that a better understanding of what prison is and what it does to people should lead, in the short term to improvements for prisoner and in the long term, to the dismantling of the present prison system as a means of containment. So on a day-to-day basis our time is spent supporting women in prison. It is their daily experience, which authenticates our work.

If you would like to be a part of this work please join us.

SERVICES AND ACTIVITIES

In the realization that women often suffer oppression as a result of their general low status in the society the service aims at providing women prisoners and the women discharged from prisons, access to justice, freedom and human dignity. To this end ‘Progress’ services are programmed to include the following activities.

1. Human rights/gender awareness and sensitization.
2. Poverty elevation.
3. skills accusation training.
4. Social welfare services.
5. Public elitement research in documentation.

AIMS & OBJECTIVES

These gender specific programs empower women prisoners facing multiple barriers to gain the confidence required for facing life and society and attaining self-sufficiency both during and on release from prison.

These programs provide these women to make life style changes that ultimately reduces their chance of recidivism. Statistics of women in prison demonstrate that majority share similar histories, barriers and personal issues prior to their arrest and conviction. The most significant commonalities these women share are low self-esteemed and nearly non-existence support system including a history of sexual and / or physical abuse, lack of education or employable skills, drug, dependence and depression.

The numerous issues that women in prison must cope with seen overwhelming however incarcerations can be vied as a positive turning point for female inmates but it presents an opportunity for the women to tackle issues that would other wise go on unresolved. Giving them a chance to recognize that what they were doing, the choices they were making, didn’t work. And realizing that it is why they are in prison.

These programs empower the participants by encouraging them to re-access to their behavior, gain marketable skills and build self esteemed in addition to providing transitional support these components of the program are the imperative because the majority of inmates will be returning to the environment they came from the goal is to instill a strong sense of self and reliable network to prevent the women from reverting to same harmful habits and group of people they were associated with before incarceration.

MENTORS & REHAB

Women in prison must prepare for what they are going to do, how they are going to do it and really find a new way of doing things. It is absolutely necessary to have a plan of action before they leave prison.

Positive role models are also a determining factor in preventing and permanently avoiding their previous criminal behavior it is crucial for women to see how and where fit into society from people in the community who are not a part for the criminal subculture. Volunteers serve as teachers, reinforcing alternative lifestyle options and the available revenues to effectively change previous habits of the female inmates.

Female offenders need to be surrounded with healthy people to move into a new way of living their lives by bringing in mentors, volunteers and people who are once in the replace that have succeeded which shows the women how to do it. This community support is one of the most pivotal pieces of the program. Manters are individuals from the community who volunteer their time and energy to assist women in prison preparing to leave and after their release, as they transit back into their society. They educate female offenders and teach them how to cope, survive and solve problems in a pro social manners also assisting them find a job and providing moral support and advice on both professional and personal levels.