The Role of Education and NGOs in the Reintegration of Inmates in Hungary

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The period of imprisonment in a penitentiary institution has four overall purposes: retribution, incapacitation, deterrence and rehabilitation. Retribution means punishment for crimes against society; it purportedly prevents future crime by removing the desire for personal avengement against the convict. Incapacitation refers to the removal of criminals from society so that they can no longer harm innocent people, and it prevents future crime by removing the convict from society. Deterrence means the prevention of future crime. Rehabilitation prevents future crime by modifying a convict's behavior and refers to those activities designed to change criminals into law abiding citizens. Rehabilitation may include providing educational and vocational programs in prison, teaching job skills and offering counselling with a psychologist or social worker. The rehabilitation does not necessarily come to an end at the moment of release, it can continue later. Recent scholarship indicates a shifting perspective on the responsibility of correctional institutions for successful reentry. Reentry begins on the first day of incarceration. Commonly, there are three phases of offender reentry programs: programs that take place during incarceration, which aim to prepare offenders for their eventual release; programs that take place during offenders' release period, which seek to connect ex-offenders with the various services they may require; and long-term programs that take place as ex-offenders permanently reintegrate back into their communities, which attempt to provide offenders with support and supervision. In Hungary, the first and second phases are known and used, but currently the system lacks long-term programmes. In the short period (maximum 1 year) after release, the activities of non-governmental, church and other charitable organizations greatly contribute to realizing reintegration. To reach the goals of reintegration, it is important that the inmate voluntarily and actively participate; that all sectors of prison life be purposefully coordinated, and that ‘free society' collaborate. This article describes how education is delivered in Hungarian prisons. The duty of correctional institutions is, along with detaining the convict, to facilitate inmates' reintegration into society in the greatest numbers possible. Reintegration and resocialization starts in the correctional facility and after release, the inmates are assisted by non-government organizations (NGOs). In Hungary, the actions of authorities and social organizations complement each other to facilitate inmate reentry. The situation is, however, exacerbated by the fact the rate of social involvement in Hungary is slight, which seriously hinders successful reintegration.