Discussion Paper by the Delegation of the People’s Republic of China at the 22^nd APCCA on Agenda Item 2:

Outsourcing of Correctional Services

   To widely mobilize the community to participate in the reform of the criminals is an effective way and method for the enhancement of the quality of reform of the criminals. The community involvement in the correction of criminals is one of the features of the Chinese penalty enforcement system. Ever since the 1950s, the Chinese prisons have already begun to mobilize the community participation in the reform of criminals. Since late 1980s, the Chinese government has taken the reform of criminals as part of the contents of the policy of comprehensive treatment of the social order, attaching importance to the mobilization of the whole society to jointly participate in the reform of the criminals. With the establishment of the socialist market economy and the development of the rule of law in China, there is more and more community participation in the reform of criminals, and the efficacy has become increasingly evident. This paper is intended to present a brief introduction of the community involvement in the reform of criminals in China.

   I. The Legal Provisions in China concerning the Community Involvement in the Reform of Criminals

   The Chinese Prison Law stipulates that “the state organs, social institutions, military troops, enterprises, and people of all sectors of the society, and the relatives of the prisoners shall assist the prisons in the education and reform of the prisoners”. According to the law, the state not only encourages the community to show concern about the reform of the prisoners, but also requests the whole society to take care of the reform of the prisoners. By this provision, we can clearly see the responsibility that the society has to take in China and the attitude that the state shows towards the participation of the community in the reform of the criminals.

   In the respect of literacy and education to prisoners, the Chinese Prison Law stipulates that “the prisons shall, according to different cases, carry out illiteracy elimination education, elementary education and junior middle education towards the prisoners. The state educational organs shall grant certain education certificates to those passing the corresponding examinations”. “The prisons encourage the prisoners to teach themselves. Those passing the examinations shall be granted an education certificate by the competent state educational organ”. With regard to the literacy and education to the juvenile offenders, the Prison law further stipulates that “ the prisons shall coordinate with the state and the society, and the schools and other educational institutions to provide necessary conditions for the juvenile offenders to get free education”. These provisions make clear the responsibility of the educational administrative organs at various levels outside the prisons to participate in the reform of the prisoners.

   In terms of the technical and vocational education to the prisoners, the Chinese Prison Law stipulates that “the prisons shall, according to the need of the prison production activities and the need of the prisoners after their release, carry out vocational and technical education to the prisoners. The labor organ shall grant a technical grade certificate to those passing the examinations”. This provision makes clear the responsibility of the state labor administration organs at various levels outside the prisons to participate in the reform of the prisoners. The law further stipulates that “the literate, vocational and technical education of prisoners shall be placed into the educational scheme of the local area where the prisoners serve their sentence”.

   In order to ensure the actual implementation of the policy of community involvement in the reform of prisoners, the Chinese Prison Law has also provided for the channels for the realization of this policy. The channels provided in the law include correspondence, prison visits and other channels. For the first channel, any institution or individual may try to help the prisoners to reform by exchanging letters with the prisoners. As to the second channel, the visit is a special way used by the relatives or legal guardian of the prisoners to help the prisoners to reform. The practice has proven that the use of the close feelings between the prisoners and their relatives is a very effective way for helping the prisoners to reform. With regard to the third channel, the Prison Law stipulates that “the state organs, social institutions, military troops, enterprises, and people of all circles of the society, and the relatives of the prisoners shall assist the prisons in the education and reform of the prisoners”. In accordance with this provision, the community may adopt various ways, forms and channels to help the prisoners to reform.

   The provisions of the Chinese Prison Law as mentioned above not only permit the community to participate in the reform of the prisoners, but also support the involvement of the community in the reform of the prisoners. They reflect a standpoint that the community should participate in the prison work. So the Chinese law has provided a wide room for the community involvement in the prison work.

   II. The Practice of the Community Participation in the Reform of Criminals and the Achievements

   The purpose of the wide mobilization by the Chinese prisons of the community to participate in the reform of the prisoners is to solve the problems that the prisoners may meet with in their mind or life so as to help the prisoners to speed up their reform. As at the end of 2001, there have been 822, 310 assistance and education agreements all over the country signed between the prisons and the community, or the prisoners’ families or other relevant institutions. The main forms and contents of the assistance and education by the community are as the follows:

   1. The Assistance and Education by the Government. The practice is that the prison administration bureau of each province and the prisons in the province will sign an assistance and education agreement with the local government. The agreement will provide clearly the responsibilities and work target of both the prison organ and the local government. The local government shall be concerned with the reform of the prisoners in its local area. It should be attentive to the solution of the practical problems that the prisons may meet with in their work, and the difficulties that the prisoners may be confronted with during their service. It is supposed that the prisoners may sense the care and concern from the government and may thus enhance the confidence of reforming.

   2. Legal Assistance and Education. We take the legal education as a main part of the assistance and education by the society. We resort to the social resources to carry out the legal education to the prisoners. We conduct the activities of legal counseling and legal aid in prisons, which are very well received by the prisoners. These activities have helped to safeguard the legal rights and interests and the prisoners and solve the practical problems of the prisoners.

   3. The Assistance and Education by the Volunteers. The Chinese prisons attach importance to the individualized assistance and education by volunteers to some individual prisoners. The volunteers, by paying visits and exchanging of letters and other manners, make friends with the prisoners all the way until the prisoners are released. The volunteers include college students, well-known people in the society and responsible people in the governments of various levels. The work by the volunteers has proved to be an encouragement for the prisoners to reform, and very helpful for strengthening the prisoners’ confidence to rehabilitate.

   4. The Assistance and Education by Relatives. During the prisoners’ service, the expectation and hope of the relatives can turn out to a huge persuasion for the prisoners to reform. So the Chinese prisons take the assistance and education by the relatives as an important part of the community involvement. Relatives of most prisoners have signed assistance and education agreement with the prison. Various ways, such as establishment of relatives’ dinning halls and special telephone line, arrangement of relatives’ gathering, arrangement of the visits by the relatives to the prison community, etc., are explored. The assistance and education by the relatives have proved to be able to produce impetus for the prisoners to rehabilitate.

   5. The Assistance and Education to Study Knowledge and Skills. The Chinese prisons, proceeding from the need of the prisoners to make a living by themselves after their release, mobilize the community and volunteers to come to the prison to teach, to help with the training of the prisoners. The prisons try to jointly open schools with the community, trying to resort to the community in carrying out the literate and technical education of the prisoners. Such efforts have, to some degree, made up for the shortage of the resources of the prisons. By statistics, as at 2001, there have been 233,191 prisoners that have obtained various diplomas, and 279,193 prisoners have obtained various technical grade certificates. 8,810 prisoners have taken the courses of higher education. Some prisoners have even finished their postgraduate education while serving their sentence.

   6. Material Assistance and Education. The Chinese prisons actively encourage the community to provide material assistance and education to the prisoners. The community have contributed to the prisons a great amount of funds, books, stationary and audio-video teaching facilities, sports facilities, medical facilities, newspapers and magazines, etc.. In Shanghai and Chengdu and other places, a “love foundation” has been established. Each of the foundation has collected over 10 million RMB from the community. All these money have or will be used for the reform of the prisoners. So the resources from the community have provided vigorous support for the prison work.

   7. Difficulties-releasing Assistance and Education. It is very common that during their service in the prison, prisoners may often meet with problems or difficulties in terms of marriage and family. If without solution, their problems may have bad effect upon the prisoners’ mind, and may even instigate some incident. The Chinese prisons send regularly the letter of proposals to the contracting assistance and education organization or to the relevant volunteers, informing the latter of the problems that the prisoner concerned is now facing, hoping to get assistance from the latter.

   8. Resettlement Assistance and Education. The resettlement of the released prisoners into the community is closely related to the consolidation of the result of the reform and the reduction of the recidivism rate. The Chinese government always attaches importance to this work. The central government and the various-leveled local governments all have established special organ to deal with this matter. Many local governments have established a number of enterprises for transitional resettlement of the released prisoners. As an illustration of the good job that has been done in the aspect of resettlement, the recidivism rate in China has always been quite low, standing at between 6%and 8%.

   To use the resources of the community as fully as possible is the need for the development of the prison work. It is the need for the socialization of the penalty enforcement. We believe that to reform the criminals into law-abiding citizens is the fundamental aim of the penalty enforcement by the prison. The socialization of the penalty enforcement by the prison is an important reform of the manner of penalty enforcement by the prison. It is also a necessary requirement for the realization of the purpose of punishment. The socialization of the penalty enforcement may enable the prisoners to keep proper contacts with the society, and help to re-mould the personality of the prisoners. It may make it easier for the released prisoners to resettle into the community. To realize the socialization of the penalty enforcement, the prison must turn its eyes to the society, trying to fully use the resources of the community. The Chinese prisons have done a lot of job in giving play to the role of the community in the correctional field, and have witnessed evident efficacy.