Attorney General Siromi Turaga will champion the work on rehabilitation of young offenders.

He highlighted this in parliament when he elaborated on the Sow a Seed program, which was launched in 2018 and focuses on integrating young first-time offenders back into the community.

Speaking on the yellow ribbon project in parliament, Turaga says young and first-time offenders will have to go through this program as part of their rehabilitation.

“These are basically young offenders who come from dysfunctional families. This is a common occurrence in prisons. The system betrays these young people because of their circumstances.”

Turaga says that the correction system needs to be revised to help these young offenders avoid reoffending. The community is the major component of rehabilitation, and we need to receive them with open arms.

Meanwhile, Opposition member Iowane Naivalurua, who initiated the yellow ribbon project when he was the Correction Commissioner, thanked the AG for standing up to lead the campaign on the rehabilitation of young first offenders.

The Fiji Correction Service is currently working with provincial councils and religious organizations to assist in the reintegration of ex-offenders back into society.