Correctional Services strengthens rehabilitation and reintegration

Department of Correctional Services’ Thohoyandou Management Area strengthens rehabilitation and reintegration

The Department of Correctional Services’ Thohoyandou Management Area hosted Victim-Offender Dialogue programme (VOD) yesterday on 29 September 2016 in Vhembe District Municipality. The session was held at Christ Worship House Church in Shayandima, attended by the victims, family of the victims, representatives of the JCPS cluster departments and other broader key stakeholders.

The emotionally charged process saw the perpetrators admitting guilt, showing remorse and asking the victims and their families to forgive them. For some victims and their families the emotions became overwhelming and had to be assisted to deal with the pain. All victims who participated forgave the offenders even though they stated that it is not easy.

The VOD is a voluntary process and provides a restorative conflict resolution process that places the victim at the centre of the correctional process. The process involves the victims and the offender in repairing the emotional and material harm caused by a crime. The process provides an opportunity for a victim and offender to discuss the offence, get answers to their questions, express feelings and gain a greater sense of closure. The victims can either accept or decline the offender’s request for forgiveness.

The acting Area Commissioner of Thohoyandou Management Area, Mr A.S Mudimeli, facilitated the process and said the programme is a necessary process of rehabilitation to ensure that the community, as the victim of crime, moves away from retribution and distrust, into partnerships that reduce crime by promoting good values of good citizenship, which empowers the victim and assist the offender to get reintegrated into society.

Trained psychologists and social workers are actively involved with both the victims and offenders prior to the actual dialogue to ensure that the parties are ready to participate in the process. The VOD process is informed by the need to intensify outreach to victims and communities, the need to profile and interact with victims of crime, the need to give offenders a second chance, and the need to form broad partnerships around fighting crime and crime prevention.

Source: Government of South Africa

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