NCJ Number
198252
Date Published
2002
Length
104 pages
Annotation
This document contains the 2001 annual report for Hong Kong correctional services.
Abstract
During the past year, the occupancy rate of penal institutions stood at 111 percent. The continuing overcrowding problem was particularly serious in female institutions. There was a 61 percent increase in the number of women sentenced to imprisonment. Some sections of male institutions were converted to accommodate female inmates as an interim measure. To meet current and future needs, the Government proposed a long-term development strategy to co-locate all penal facilities in one place. The Rehabilitation Centre Program will be implemented in 2002-2003 to meet the rehabilitation needs of young offenders whose crimes call for short-term residential treatment. This provides an intermediate sanction between the longer term Training Centre Program and non-custodial measures administered by the Social Welfare Department. In 2001, 10,392 adult males were sentenced to imprisonment and 5,347 remanded in custody. Over sixty-three hundred female adults were sentenced to imprisonment and 1,535 remanded in custody. Young men and women under the age of 21 numbered 434 and 1,350, respectively, in sentencing to imprisonment, while 588 young men and 288 young women were remanded in custody. On admission, all convicted prisoners attend a Classification and Categorization Board that determines the type of institution to which they will be assigned. They also undergo a thorough medical examination including an X-ray. Prisoners are engaged in a wide range of industrial activities inside workshops, including carpentry, metalwork, fiberglass, garment-making, and government-run laundries. Young prisoners undergo a comprehensive correctional program while serving their sentences, including vocational training, educational classes, counseling, group activities, recreation, and physical education. 18 appendices