Correctional Service of Solomon Islands (CSSI) and its Yellow Ribbon Team and the Seventh Day Adventist (SDA) Church 31 Youth leaders have met to tackle the issues affecting Solomon Islands youths.
Why do we have growing number of young people in CSSI facilities? This is a question for everyone to think about it seriously and it needs an answer to it.
The team from CSSI Yellow Ribbon Project (YRP) were more than happy to respond to a request from the Seventh Day Adventist SDA Mission Youth Regional Coordinator Mr Bongi Darlingi to deliver messages on CSSI, its Yellow Ribbon Project and Crime Prevention messages to his training participants at SDA Mission HQ conference room.
SDA is one of the more active faith providers in Rove Central Correctional Centre consistently delivering spiritual rehabilitation and health messages to CSSI prisoners. As a result of their generous work to help the inmates to change lives and live a better life in the society upon their release from jail after completing their terms.
The yellow ribbon team saw this invitation to preach the message what is scheduled in God’s timeline to assist the body of Christ to effectively deliver his work to the prisoners who are seen as least in our society or elsewhere in the world.
The two themes were crime prevention presentation and yellow ribbon the first was delivered by Staff Sergeant Glins Clay designed purposely for the SDA youth leaders to aware of why young people go to jail, he gave firsthand information about his experiences with young people in jail that he encountered daily.
The second message on Yellow Ribbon Project was delivered by Inspector George Walahoula, about Giving a Second Chance to an ex-offender.
The SDA youth leaders were encouraged to see the importance of giving a second chance to an ex-offender, accepting, forgiving and supporting ex-offenders upon their return to their communities and to support CSSI in providing more meaningful rehabilitation programmes to inmates in Correctional Facilities.
The two presentations looked at ways for the wider community to better understand the role of Corrections and ways for the wider community to help CSSI to help our sons, brothers and sisters in jail, helping ensure that they are properly rehabilitated and effectively re-integrated back in to our society.
CSSI is calling and challenging the youth leaders that CSSI can’t do the rehabilitation approach effectively by its own, CSSI needs you and all responsible Churches, government organisations, Civil Societies Organisations, Non Government Organisations (NGOs), International Development Agencies, Corporate Bodies and our International Diplomats. The Yellow Ribbon Project (YRP) message is another concept added to CSSI rehabilitation process and it acts like a bridge builds the gap between our communities and CSSI. The YRP message presenter Mr. George Walahoula said, “The advocating and act of wearing a yellow ribbon is an active display of community support in offering a second chance and acceptance for ex-offenders.
Yellow ribbon will symbolize his or her hope for forgiveness and acceptance. The yellow ribbon projects seek to engage the community in giving a second chance in life and inspire a ripple effect of concerted to support ex-offenders and their families”.
Inspector George Walahoula, went on to say that the successful re-integration of an offender into the community is the best security for Solomon Islands society, further that increased investment in prisoners education, health care and employability of would be compensated by a reduction in criminality and anti social behavior and for every dollar spent on inmates, the return of investment to the government and the society is a changed and better person returning back to their Community”
The YRP presentation was co-facilitated by Director Programs & Industries (acting) Inspector George Walahoula, Deputy Director (acting) Staff Sergeant Glins Clay and CSSI Welfare Officer Inspector Percy Elima. The CSSI Yellow Ribbon Team are ready and keen to work alongside with any organizations and community groups to help build Solomon Islands a prosperous, safe, secure and harmonious environment for all citizens and visitors.
By Glins Clay
