“Men Against Violence” – in Correctional Colonies

The Kherson public organization “Men Against Violence” has been working for over a year with convicts located in the correctional colonies of our region. During this time, a documentary film, “Doors”, was shot, and a “Guide for People Released from Places of Deprivation of Liberty” was developed and printed. All this work was carried out with the financial support of the Danish Ministry of Foreign Affairs. And now, the project has ended.
The manager of the project “Cooperation with the Penitentiary System to Improve the Educational and Legal Level Among Convicts”, Andrii Nedbailo, said at a press conference on 6 May at the Palace of Youth that the main goals of the project had been achieved: convicts have access to information on human rights and the ability to defend them, a methodological base for conducting a cycle of socio-psychological interaction has been prepared, and a consulting point for developing skills in constructive life-problem solving is operating. But something else is also important. The meetings were always voluntary. And when more and more people started attending them, on one hand, it was an indicator of trust and interest, and on the other hand, more and more new questions arose. For example, during one of the discussions, the convicts were told that a Law on Mediation was currently being drafted. They asked to be shown the draft, saying that it was very important for them. After all, mediation is a method of pre-trial conflict resolution. Usually, these are voluntary negotiations in the presence of a neutral mediator.
Currently, mediation is mainly applied in business and commerce, and sometimes in politics. Not long ago, it also began to be used in schools as a reconciliation procedure in interpersonal conflicts. And in developed countries, it is also used in resolving legal (pre-trial) conflicts. And this proved to be a very effective way to reduce stress and the losses from offences, both for the victim and for the offender. Several years ago, such experiments began to be conducted in Russia as well. For example, there was a case: a young guy saw an open car with keys left inside, “decided” to take it for a ride, and immediately crashed into a tree on the roadside. The owner of the car jumped out of the shop where he was buying cigarettes, caught the boy himself, and delivered him to the police. At first, he “almost killed” him. The boy was facing a serious sentence—the car was expensive, and he lived alone with his mother, and they had no way to pay the debt. In the end, after all the negotiations, the victim stood up for the “kid” in court and even took him on to work. By the way, this businessman gained more than he expected: if the boy had been “locked away”, he wouldn't have felt any better, but this way, the boy helped repair the car himself, and for a while, gave part of his salary as compensation. And the guy didn't get a “stigma”, and more importantly, he was heard and forgiven…
When the “Men” brought the draft Law to the convicts, they didn't just suggest they read it, but rather analyze it and express their comments. Andrii Nedbailo says he did not expect such an effect: in his opinion, the proposals developed by the convicts greatly improve the Law. They sent these proposals to the Ministry of Justice. And although they haven't received an answer yet, the fact that the convicts are participating seriously and thoughtfully in the life of society and the country is already a huge step on the path to their resocialization.