|
Some of them settled their lives, others are homeless. In
Kherson there are over 20 organizations, both governmental and non-governmental
that help to released ex-prisoners (or at least, the say they help). But
very few people go there to get help.
In the Colony #7 there was a case when the released prisoner was forced
to leave the prison, he was literally forced to go outside the prison
gates - he took a firm stand and did not want to leave, even though he
served his sentence from dawn to dusk. When the employees finally left
him outside the gates he climbed the hoisting crane at the nearby building
site and screamed from the top "If you do not let me come back I
will jump from here".
This year in the prison #90 the prisoner hid on the day of his release.
Employees were searching for him entire day, because he couldn't have
ran away on the day of his own release. Finally he was found in the corner
of the dining house. He did not want to step out himself and shouted "Wolves,
what for? Even the dogs go outside in such weather (it was in the early
spring, it was very cold and rainy). I will come back in any case!"
And he kept his word: he went up the Nekrasova street, reached the first
store with signaling, broke the window and sit down waiting for police.
In twenty minutes he found a phone machine and called police himself:
"Why are you sitting there? The store is being robbed! The signaling
did not work out??? I saw it myself!" and he provided description
of him, and added that the robber is still near the store. And he came
back to the store. In some time he came back to the same prison to serve
another sentence.
There are enough examples in all institutions. But still - such behavior
is an exception. The majority counts the hours and minutes till their
release. Going back to freedom - is a happy and at the same time uneasy
moment. A happy moment is understandable to even to those who have never
been behind the bars. And uneasy moment because the person who comes outside
the prison walls is different and the society is also different. It is
understandable that the attitude to this person will be different than
before his imprisonment…
In this stage of re-socialization governmental social services and non-governmental
organizations they can help to renew social relations, get official documents,
find place to work and study, find a place to live, and of course establish
relations with others. But now there are no lines to these 20 organizations,
and only individual people go there. Why? Because they prefer to commit
another crime and go back to prison? May be they do not know about their
rights confirmed by the Laws, services that can help them to start a new
life? May be these services are not effective and the rights are violated?
May be they do not trust these organizations? Or they need different kinds
of help?
The State Department of Ukraine of execution of sentences in Kherson region
and Kherson city center for youth initiatives "Totem" with financial
support of Switzerland fund for Cooperation in Ukraine are trying to find
answers to these questions.
And here are the first results of the round table organized together with
psychologists and employees of labor and household services (TBO) of prisons
and jails. The round table was conducted in Kherson on July 29, 2004.
It turned out that some prisoners, for example, are afraid to fill out
anonymous surveys when they see header with words "District police".
The ask "Is this survey from them? They can determine who filled
out the survey from my handwriting" even though the survey only asked
to put + or - in response to questions.
At the same time it turned out that after their release, ex-prisoners
go to the police more frequently seeking for help: they think that the
police will understand them better because "police words don't contradict
with their actions". Before the release, the TBO service employees
give prisoners addresses and phone numbers of Labor center, Center for
social services, but only individual persons say "Thank you, I will
need this". But a more amazing thing is that frequently the employees
of such centers themselves do not know how they can help their clients.
During the round table we heard such comment: "if these organizations
could provide materials assistance, there would be lines of people. They
are fed up with moral and spiritual food, and it is much easier to break
the window when you have empty stomach and return to the prison"
It means that the inspectors themselves do not clearly understand that
social rehabilitation means to teach give a fishing tackle, not the fish.
All inspectors emphasized that Kherson region needs its regional rehabilitation
center and of course they were right: after release it is much easier
for someone to come to one center, instead of going to ten different centers.
Then we found out that both inspectors from social service centers and
prisoners trust rehabilitation centers more - they go there a lot and
receive answers to their questions.
Unfortunately, in many centers they do not provide services to people
who have tuberculosis (in Kherson there are 2 hospitals-prisons for people
with tuberculosis) and in these centers they have limited amount of beds
(only for 20-30 people)
From the recently released prisoners one went to the rehabilitation center
in Lviv region. For others there were no places, some did not even risk
to go there.
Irina Ukhvarina,
"Vhoru"
|
