Faith-based rehab eyed to improve inmates’ conduct
The Bureau of Corrections (BuCor) on Saturday said it is stepping up efforts to expand faith-based rehabilitation programs, saying these initiatives could help reduce violence among inmates and support their reintegration into society.
BuCor Director General Gregorio Pio Catapang Jr. cited research presented at an international conference, which showed that inmates who took part in religious programs demonstrated “significantly greater progress” toward rehabilitation than those who chose not to join such programs.
Those were the conclusions made at the International Research in Corrections Conference held in Auckland on March 2 to March 5. The forum was organized by the International Corrections and Prisons Association (Icpa) together with New Zealand’s Department of Corrections.
More than 300 corrections practitioners, researchers and policymakers from 30 countries gathered at that inaugural assembly with its conference theme, “What Works in Corrections: Research Driving Safe Environments, Rehabilitation and Reintegration.”
Lower aggression
The conference, a specialized gathering apart from Icpa’s annual conferences, is focused on evidence-based approaches to safer prison environments and effective reintegration, according to that group based in Brussels, Belgium.
Catapang said inmates engaged in faith-based activities were more likely to show lower levels of aggression and other behavioral improvements as they deal with conflicts with other prisoners.
Joining religious practices, in particular, helped foster empathy and even a shift in personal identity—factors which the BuCor chief described as key to “restorative rehabilitation.”
Inmates who reported progress in these programs were less likely to retaliate against fellow prisoners, he said, adding that a higher “spiritual engagement” in BuCor’s facilities helped reduce violence there.
Catapang said the agency’s push for faith-based programs is in line with global efforts to adopt more holistic approaches to corrections, including “behavioral interventions with moral and spiritual development.”
BuCor has yet to release the data from the Icpa research it cited.
Catapang said, however, the findings would help guide policy and program development in the country’s prison system.
