Juvenile inmates encouraged to reconnect with society before release

there's no reformation intended in Japan's punitive system.

they destroy immates mentally and physically. everyone is broken forever after stepping in a j-jail.

After someone serves time in Japan, they have no future. Society will NOT allow it. This is not like in America where you can become a wealthy lawyer after serving 20 years for murder.

"Reconnect" with society through their social media accounts.....

It is important that juveniles are given the opportunity for rehabilitation. The US focus on punishment is morally detestable.

Japan's re-offending rate is nearly 70%, and juvenile recidivism on the increase. There is obviously something seriously wrong with Japan's penal system. (As well as Japan's legal system).

Wholly insufficient by itself but a step on the right direction, juvenile delinquency is a very delicate problem without a clear easy solution, but giving up without trying anything is obviously the worst approach, if giving some support decreases the recidivism that is a good investment.

*"....Of some 6,000 repeat offenders last year, more than 1,000 were unemployed, *leading many experts to believe that employment is a key element to preventing young offenders from repeating crimes...."

Thank god we've got experts. Who'da thought?

If the system / institutions were really serious about setting up positive futures for the young inmates, from both a personal and society perspective, they should be training them in IT skills and other relevant technologies. Making themselves marketable will be a key to gaining long term employment with hope.

Unfortunately as Scarce indicated, society itself will need to shed it's discriminatory skin and accept these young people. Not holding my breath on that one.

Rehabilitation is a complicated road especially without government incentives or mandates.

Let's say you have a company with 15 spots needed to be filled. You get 45 applications of which 5 acknowledge a criminal past. Unless there is a company policy on the books for hiring ex-cons favoring the ex-con, like a guaranteed in person interview or guaranteed conversation with a parole officer or community outreach program, we know that application is being skipped over for the sake of time.

And on the flip side, how does a company not take a hit in court of public opinion when it becomes known that there are standards that favor ex-cons like guaranteed interviews or, in extreme cases, allocated employment positions for ex-cons.

Getting someone back into a system that has passed judgement on them is not as easy as just encouraging people to talk.

A second chance? I still wait for my first one, just only normal and without being out of such an institution. Forget it, and forget it quickly. lol

It's simple.

Send them to the military for two years. Or make them do mandatory manual labor for the city. Make them learn some respect.

@shogun

If you don't think there are trouble makers in the military, you are mistaken.

P. SmithToday 09:12 am JST

It is important that juveniles are given the opportunity for rehabilitation. The US focus on punishment is morally detestable.

Where in this article is the US mentioned?

This comment was from another person, but I see nothing wrong with it. Why should we not compare Japan with other countries and how they handle their criminal youth?

For sure the prison population in Japan is very small compared to many countries worldwide and in general wherever you are in Japan it is safe, no problem to go out day or night. Maybe some countries can learn from Japan. I never have been threatened by any criminal Japanese so far and this since more than 40 years.

bokudaToday  06:45 am JST

there's no reformation intended in Japan's punitive system.

they destroy immates mentally and physically. everyone is broken forever after stepping in a j-jail.

The victims of the crimes, many of them, are being mentally and physically destroyed in advance.

Let's start from there.

Besides, take some notes on Japan's low crime ration per capita, indictment ratio per capita, prison sentence ration per crimes/per capita.

Because @P.Smith 9:12am has a point: Both of you, @Yohan 1:33pm & @Eyeblack 7:09am, are ‘way off topic’:

- “Where in this article is the US mentioned?”- Why should we not compare Japan with other countries and how they handle their criminal youth?” -

In your next paragraph...

- “the prison population in Japan is very small compared to many countries”

...You’ve answered your own question. And a good majority are not prosecuted and allowed to re-offend, again and again. So, there is no ‘comparing’ Japan to other countries.

- “in general, wherever you are in Japan, it is safe, no problem to go out day or night.” -

Really? How many of you would allow your daughters to be alone with one of these ‘reformed’ juveniles offenders?

Japan needs to stand up and fix their own problems. No need to point at what other countries may, or may not, be doing.

You might start by reading Yesterday’s “Juvenile Law Revisions” and then addressing, honestly, addressing issues like the one in the article above.

Japan needs to stand up and fix their own problems. No need to point at what other countries may, or may not, be doing.

Putting aside frequent comments criticizing and positioning Japan's conditions in relative to others, like "Japan's re-offending rate is nearly 70%, and juvenile recidivism on the increase", Yes. You are right. Japan should seek for it's own ideal status ignoring what are the realities in other countries.

Comparing it with US, Russia, China, other Asian countries like Philippines or even some central Europe are just ridiculous, as the definition of Juvenile itself is different and there's not such thing like juvenile training school in some countries.

Your choice after being beaten up by police after incarceration is, go back to dysfunction family, work on a construction site for ¥700 or hand out soapland flyers.

""Of some 6,000 repeat offenders last year, more than 1,000 were unemployed, leading many experts to believe that employment is a key element to preventing young offenders from repeating crimes.""

Yes Sir, in fact unemployment is the leading factor why so many people commit white crimes, not having enough to eat or a place to sleep leads people to what ever it takes to survive.