Director of the Department of Social Services Mellany Zonicle on Wednesday, October 30, announced that the Ministry of Social Services and Community Development will recognize November as “Rehabilitative Month.”
Ms. Zonicle said the month will be held under the theme “I Can Make A Difference,” and is mainly intended to challenge the public to continue to examine the causes and sources of crime.
“The Ministry of Social Services and Community Development, through the Department of Rehabilitative Welfare Services,” she said, “recognizes that the rehabilitative process for individuals who have had contact with the criminal justice system is often long and complex and requires the support of the family, church and community.”
The department is a part of the network that provides counselling, supervision and casework services for individuals who are before the courts, serving sentences in the community, or are residents of the Willie Mae Pratt and Simpson Penn Centres and inmates of Her Majestyﾴs Fox Hill Prisons.
“Rehabilitation month,” Ms. Zonicle said, “further emphasizes the relationship among the government agencies and social partners who facilitate the rehabilitative process. This type of partnership is important as no one agency has all the solutions to combating antisocial behaviour.”
Throughout the month, the media will assist in sensitizing the public to the root causes of crime and the need for rehabilitative programmes in the community and at the correctional institutions, she said. Ms. Zonicle said activities for the month include a church service at the prison and shows on radio and television.
There are also activities to help with dialogue with the youth of the nation, such as an open-air meeting at the Montell Heights Park, an anger management workshop at Her Majestyﾴs Prisons, and a health seminar for boys “at risk” at Holy Cross Parish Hall.
At Her Majestyﾴs Prisons, young persons at risk will have an opportunity to hear about the mistakes of re-focused inmates in order to sensitize them to the consequences of crime, Ms. Zonicle said. A basketball tournament will also be held at the prison.
Community activities include rap sessions in the park and parenting forums. Parenting today has special challenges, she said, and can be exacerbated when there is only one parent present in the household.
The department endeavours to strengthen the parenting skills of those parents referred to the department and from the wider community. These presentations help the participants learn ways to identify disciplinary techniques that reinforce their childrenﾴs sense of responsibility for their actions, Ms. Zonicle said.
During the month discussions will continue on matters relating to issues of being separated from breadwinners in families.
A computer lab will be opened at the Willie Mae Pratt Centre to encourage partnerships with the community. The computers were donated. Because residents of the centres must return to their families, another activity that will be held at the Willie Mae Pratt Centre is a meeting for parents, teachers and social workers to help pave the way for the return of youngsters to the community.
A highlight of the month is an exhibition of arts and crafts created at the Willie Mae Pratt and Simpson Penn Centres and Her Majestyﾴs Prisons.
By Stirling Strachan
Bahamas Information Services
