July 17, 2024
By Shaukat Korai
KARACHI:
248 inmates of the Karachi Central Jail were awarded diplomas for completing various vocational education and training (VET) courses. At the convocation ceremony held on June 27, the position holders in computer and information technologies, graphic designing, and English and Chinese language courses were also given cash prizes and other gifts.
With the support of prison authorities, Karachi Central Jail’s VET programmes have been offered by Alkhidmat’s Computer Training and Language Center with the support of the prison authorities since 2001.
“We motivate convicted and under-trial prisoners to leave a world of crime and live as upstanding citizens through degrees,” Abdul Karim Abbasi, Senior Superintendent of the Karachi Central Jail, explained. He provided that many of the inmates were given pens for the first time in their lives through these programmes. “They can serve their sentences productively and have an opportunity to earn money that they can send to their families.”
Muhammad Asif, an under-trial prisoner who is facing trial for murder, is one such beneficiary of the programme. He attained the top position in the Chinese language course, and is currently enrolled in a short course on graphic design.
“I have completed multiple courses during the past five years of my imprisonment. The best thing about it is that the time I could have spent in bad company was instead spent in getting an education,” he said. “When I am eventually released, I can avail better job opportunities as a degree-holder.”
Asif’s bail application was rejected by a trial court, following which he moved the high court twice. The high court has till date issued directives, but has yet to decide on Asif’s bail plea.
Asif Ali, who is charged with attempted murder, said that he is relieved that the one-and-a-half years he has spent in jail have not gone to waste.
“I took painting courses, so now I make fine art. I also completed courses in graphic design, and got third in the language programme,” he provided.
Inmates who have performed well and want to continue with the programme can also enroll as trainers.
“I teach Chinese, which I learned here in prison,” said Syed Ali Furqan. “My teacher was also a prisoner, and he was eventually released. I am now teaching other inmates.”
According to Abbasi, diplomas are issued by the Sindh Board of Technical Education through this programme.
“Prison authorities do not stamp these diplomas,” he said, emphasizing an effort to spare rehabilitated former inmates prejudice in employment opportunities. He provided that beneficiaries of the prison’s VET programme have gone on to find full-time work in CPEC projects, and have started up their own businesses in computers and IT.
A 2008 study by the Australian Institute of Criminology, there was a noted reduction in recidivism for prisoners who participated in VET programmes in comparison to those who did not. The study noted that 32% of prisoners who did not participate in these programmes before their initial release returned into custody within two years, while only 23% of VET participants returned.
Separately, a 2022 paper published in the Pakistan Languages and Humanities Review found that for seven young offenders in a correctional facility in Hyderabad, rehabilitative education played an essential role transforming them into law-abiding citizens after release.