Correctional Services Bureau Organizes Youth Forum to Call for Support for Rehabilitation (2017-08-12)

To enhance young people’s understanding of correctional services and encourage them to learn and care for different social groups, on 8 August, the Correctional Services Bureau invited the Macao New Chinese Youth Association to a forum and visit activity, during which the members of the Association interacted and talked with young inmates, toured the facilities of Coloane Prison and explored topics including youth crime prevention and assistance for inmates and housed juveniles in their rehabilitation. The activities of the day also aimed to use youth power to gather more community acceptance and support for inmates and housed juveniles in their return to society.

Over 20 members of the Macao New Chinese Youth Association, including the Vice-presidents of its Board of Directors Si Nei Na, Lao Cho Chon and Lao Si Wan, attended the activities. In a speech during the activities, Director of Correctional Services Bureau Cheng Fong Meng mentioned that, upholding its dual principle of “punishment” and “education”, the Bureau is committed to helping inmates and housed juveniles establish correct values and re-integrate into society, in addition to enforcing confinement and detention measures in accordance with the law. The Bureau hopes that the variety of activities held will enable the public to understand the functions and social roles of Coloane Prison and Youth Correctional Institution and gather attention and support from society for inmates and housed juveniles’ future return to society.

The Bureau arranged two young inmates around the same age as the visitors to disclose their past mistakes and transformations upon imprisonment, so as to caution them against acting on impulse and breaking the law, as it will cost them their freedom. In return, visitors sent well wishes to the inmates who had lost time due to imprisonment and felt confused for the future, encouraging them to remain hopeful and well utilize the time in prison to acquire knowledge and skills, as in this way, they will feel valued and contribute to the society.

Thereafter, the visiting young people toured the facilities of Coloane Prison, including the visit rooms, general checkpoint, cells and classrooms, as well as the garment-making workshop and baking workshop where inmates acquire vocational skills. At the baking workshop, the visitors all had a taste of the bread freshly baked by the inmates, for which they sung high praises. The visitors also agreed that the vocational training offered to inmates can facilitate their return to the workforce in the future.

During the forum, many participants provided valuable opinion for the Bureau’s rehabilitation services, including adjusting or increasing the types of vocational training in accordance with the human resources demands on the market, and developing and utilizing the new media and the internet to raise care, acceptance and assistance for the inmates and the housed juveniles returning to society. Vice-president Si Nei Na recognized the long-term efforts of the Bureau on facilitating the inmates and the housed juveniles in their rehabilitation, and expressed that using peer influence would allow more widespread understanding and care for the people in need. Director Cheng Fong Meng thanked the young visitors for providing innovative ideas, which would facilitate the development of correctional services and help build a stable, prosperous and harmonious Macao.

In the future, the Correctional Services Bureau will continue to hold youth forums on a periodical basis, enhancing the exchanges among young people from different sectors, encouraging their engagement in social affairs and fostering their civic consciousness and social responsibility. Moreover, the Bureau will also regularly organize activities to deepen public understanding on corrections and call for continued support for its work and acceptance for the inmates and the housed juveniles, and promote a message of care in the society.

The inmates interact and talk with the visitors

The visitors recognize the inmates’ determination to acquire vocational skills

Our personnel have some in-depth exchanges with the visitors on the community support needed for the rehabilitation of the inmates and the housed juveniles

The visitors photographed together with our personnel