More focus will be made in 2012 by the FCS on evaluating the effectiveness of the Yellow Ribbon campaign.

The increase in the Fiji Corrections Service 2012 budgetary allocation will enable proper evaluation of the effectiveness of its flagship Yellow Ribbon Project.

Director of Corporate Services, Peniasi Kunatuba welcomed the increase saying that 2012 was an exciting year as major initiatives including CARE (Community Action for the Rehabilitation of Ex-offenders) and FCORE (Fiji Corporation for Rehabilitative Enterprises) are expected to come on line.

The FCS has a slight increase to $20.8 million from $19.1 million in 2010.

The biggest capital project would be the construction of the remand centre in Suva at a cost of $4m. This will be completed in June 2012.

The flagship Yellow Ribbon and Rehabilitation projects both received increases from $100,000 to $150,000 each.

Mr Kunatuba said the Corrections Service has a legal requirement to rehabilitate inmates from the time of their admission, pre-release, release and post-release.

He said with a Government mandate to reduce recidivism, rehabilitation has taken greater priority in the work of the department, particularly with the need to address the behavioural pattern that caused inmates to commit their offences.

“A more customized and systematic approach needs to be adopted in supporting behavioural enhancement for all offenders.

“The boost in funds for YRP will allow us to visit inmates’ families as part of their initial profiling, during pre-release consultations with families to foster successful reintegration with the community and during their actual release,” Mr Kunatuba said.

All released inmates will also be taken home by officials of the FCS.

The FCS also plans to launch YRP in every urban centre as we continue to appeal to the community to give offenders a second chance, that offenders have merely gone off track.

“We need the support of the community on this initiative.”

Next Friday, we are launching in Nadi,” Mr Kunatuba said.

There will also be evaluation exercises on the effectiveness of the YRP.

Director of Rehabilitation, Superintendant Salote Panapasa said the increase in the budget for Rehabilitation would enable a more focused and personalized programmes including sex and drug offences.

“In 2012 we will be changing the way we do our business in as far as treatment programmes are concerned,” she said.

“We will target our resources to programmes that would lower recidivism and keep the community safe,” SP Panapasa said.

The FCS also wants to increase its interoperability with the Fiji Police Force through joint efforts with Community policing to target the supposed ‘red zone’ crime of our urban centres.

“While the Police Force will be creating awareness in the community about the effects of crime, we want to tell people that there is nothing glamorous about prison life,” Mr Kunatuba said.

The Yellow Ribbon concept was introduced to Fiji in 2008.

www.corrections.org.fj