Wednesday, October 03, 2007 Reintegration of men, women in jail through restorative justice
THE City Council committee on family and child care and development chaired by Councilor Celia Flor will conduct workshops in November in connection with the proposed ordinance laying down procedures for community work service or CWS programs in Bacolod City.
This is for the purpose of reintegrating men and women in prison and those undergoing community-based rehabilitation into the mainstream of society.
The proposed ordinance provides that the rights and welfare of men and women who are in prison and those who are undergoing community-based rehabilitation must be respected and they should be given a chance to still become productive and responsible law-abiding citizens.
The purpose of the workshops is to come up with a menu for intervention and reintegration of the offenders into the community, Flor said.
Community work service is defined as the free public labor performed by a person involving the principle of restorative justice for the benefit of the community.
It is not necessarily a penalty but is a form of public service to engender upon the person a sense of civic consciousness and social responsibility, she said.
Forms of community work service are: mentoring and intergenerational service, economic development, citizenship and civic participation, helping the disadvantaged and crime prevention projects.
The CWS committee will be chaired by the mayor with the City Parole Officer as vice chairman. Members are: the Association of Barangay Councils president, school district supervisor, chief of police, City Council committee on social services, Department of Interior and Local Government, City Prosecutor’s Office, Bureau of Jail Management, among others.
