The perceptions and experiences of male offenders regarding social and rehabilitation services at Chikurumbi Farm Prison in Zimbabwe
Master Thesis
2014
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University of Cape Town
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There is very little that has been written on the rehabilitation programmes offered to offenders in African prisons. The main focus of this study was to explore the perceptions of sentenced male offenders on the social services and rehabilitation programmes offered at Chikurubi Farm Prison in Zimbabwe. An exploratory qualitative approach was used in this study. The purposive sample consisted of twenty adult male offenders who had been incarcerated for at least two years at Chikurubi Farm Prison in Zimbabwe. Face -to- face interviews with a semi structured interview scheduled were used to gather data for the study. The study found that there were various rehabilitation programmes offered at the prison namely; agricultural, educational, vocational, recreational, life skills, spiritual and psychosocial therapeutic programmes. The study found that the main programmes that majority of the respondents were involved in were agricultural and vocational in nature. The study also found that the prison rendered medical attention to sick inmates, allowed the inmates to maintain contact with the outside world through letters, visitation every month and telephone calls. Furthermore, the results show that the inmates felt that the social services rendered to them were generally good, had a good impact on them even though some of the inmates felt that they needed improvement. The results also show that the most of the inmates felt that the rehabilitation programmes that they underwent were good and helpful, prepared them for release and provided them with knowledge and skills. Very few expressed their dissatisfaction. It is clear from the study that there are areas in which the Zimbabwe Prison Service (ZPS) can improve on the social services and rehabilitation programmes that they offer at the prison. The main recommendations were that the ZPS offer more psychosocial therapeutic programmes and recreational programmes; volunteer tutors and student social workers and psychologists do their field placements at the prison; the inmates be provided with warm clothes and bedding and that telephone be installed at the rehabilitation office.
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Kusada, J. 2014. The perceptions and experiences of male offenders regarding social and rehabilitation services at Chikurumbi Farm Prison in Zimbabwe. University of Cape Town.