There is no commonly agreed definition of the term ‘rehabilitation’ among the schools of the social sciences and humanities. It is therefore the aim of this section to analyse a variety of definitions from different scholars. As explained in the introductory chapter of this study, according to Amanda Dissel (2008:156), from the Centre for the Study of Violence and Reconciliation in South Africa, ‘rehabilitation’ is a term that is generally acknowledged to be used interchangeably with the word ‘reintegration.’
According to Marian Liebmann (1994), the aims of rehabilitation in the Scottish Prison Service are defined as follows:
To provide for prisoners as full a life as is consistent with the facts of custody, in particular making available the physical necessities of life; care for physical and mental health, advice and help with personal problems. To protect and preserve the self respect of prisoners. To enable prisoners to retain links with family and community; to encourage them to respond and contribute positively to society on discharge (Liebmann 1994:17).
Derick T. Wade and Bareld A. de Jong (2000) define rehabilitation as “a reiterative, active, educational, problem solving process focused on a…
[person’s] behaviour …, with the following components:
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•Assessment—the identification of the nature and extent of the patient's problems and the factors relevant to their resolution
•Goal setting
•Intervention, which may include either or both of (a) treatments, which affect the process of change; (b) support, which maintains the … [person's] quality of life and his or her safety
•Evaluation—to check on the effects of any intervention.”
Dissel echoes the view of Clive Hollin (2002), that rehabilitation when considered from a moral basis is a humanitarian action which is aimed at reducing crime. Therefore it takes care of issues of justice for both the individual to be integrated and the community into which the person is being settled. The concept of justice is further developed by Morgan and Owers (2001:12) who have shown how the definition of rehabilitation of the UK Association of Chief Officers of Probation combines the needs of the individual with the protection of the community. They define rehabilitation as follows:
A systematic and evidence based process by which actions are taken to work with the offender in custody and on release, so that communities are better protected from harm and reoffending is significantly reduced. It encompasses the totality of work with prisoners, their families and significant others in partnership with statutory and voluntary organisations (Morgan and Owers 2001:12).
In a broader sense, the theory of justice expounded by John Rawls (2001:6-7) has at its basis the concept of fairness, which in turn involves social cooperation to achieve reciprocal and rational advantage for all persons. In the context of rehabilitation, such a concept of justice is restorative in that implies that both victim and perpetrator deserve a fair outcome in terms of recompense for crime committed (for the victim) and rehabilitation (for the perpetrator). However, it also implies that the recompense offered as well as the rehabilitation received must be morally sensible or reasonable23.
The concept of justice is also central in feminist theory, although the primary concern for feminists is with gender justice. From the feminist perspective on justice, Rakoczy (2004:47) notes:
Since women are baptised into Christ, gifted with his Spirit, they hear the
23 John Rawls, A Theory of justice. (Cambridge: The Belknap Press of Harvard University Press) 1971; John Rawls, Justice as Fairness: A Restatement. Edited by Erin Kelly. (Cambridge: The Belknap Press of Harvard) University Press) 2001.
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same gospel as their brothers, with its call to make the world a place of justice and freedom.
Rakoczy goes on to highlight the document “Justice in the world” (1971), in which it is argued that:
…action on behalf of justice and participation in the transformation of the world fully appear to us as a constitutive dimension of the preaching of the gospel or, in other words, of the church’s mission for the redemption of the human race and its liberation from every oppressive situation (“Justice in the World” 1971:6 cited in Rakoczy 2004:47).
Rakoczy (2004:48) further asserts that justice in the church includes the voices and experiences of all people, whom the church is called to liberate as part of its mission. In addition, she argues that it is not enough to only allow women to be involved in church work when it concerns cleaning, cooking and flower-arranging, and to exclude them from all decision making processes (2004:221). The inclusivity advocated by Rakoczy extends beyond the church to the broader society. With regards to the rehabilitation for female prisoners and ex-prisoners, they too need to play roles in decision making regarding the ways in which their rehabilitation and reintegration will take place, in order for justice to be attained. As a result, their voices in this study are crucial.
Three facts are notable as regards the above definitions of rehabilitation. First, they do not address the need for pastoral care for the ex-prisoners while in prison or after release.
Second, the definitions are working with the assumption that the needs of male and female ex-prisoners are the same. Accordingly, they do not address the central issues of gender. Third, the understanding of community is not contextualised. These definitions thus claim to be valid for all contexts and all ethnicities and both genders. However, according to feminist perspectives, the idea that female prisoners and ex-prisoners can be rehabilitated into living in a law abiding manner once released into the community, is unfeasible unless the fact that the community itself has cultural and religious laws which are unjust towards women is recognised. For example, Participant Chengeto from the study was sentenced for theft of domestic property. She stated that:
I stole at my place of work and I worked as a house maid. I stole because sometimes they did not pay me. At other times we drank mahewu [a drink made from fermented maize meal], for the whole day. So I thought of stealing
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from the house to supplement food after selling the stolen items. Sometimes after earning my salary I would buy food because they did not always offer me food. I ate once a day in the evening when they came home from work.
The story told by this participant reflects the situation of structural injustice in several ways. First, in her place of work she had little to eat. Second, although she holds a Secondary School Form Four certificate she has no access to training for skills so that she may look for a job. Third, she is a former convict. Caught up in this vicious cycle, it is very difficult for female ex-prisoners to be law-abiding citizens after release. This narrative has t h u s exposed the underlying issue of economic justice as a core component of any analysis of rehabilitation of female ex-prisoners. This is more than a pastoral care issue. Imprisonment is not simply a moral and ethical issue, but rather one of economic injustice within a society built on an unjust economic order.
The crime of theft was common among the participants of the study. Participant Sarudzo was arrested on three accounts of theft. She narrated that:
I was arrested in 2006 for theft. I used to work in a bar and I stole money with another guy I used to work with because the salary was so meagre that I mainly used it for transportation both to and from work. The guy managed to escape and I was caught and jailed for two years. I came out of prison in 2008 and stayed for a while and I stole again, mainly because I did not have any work. I stole some money and a cell phone from my boyfriend and I was arrested and jailed. I was released on the condition that I pay back all the money I had stolen. I failed to pay since I was not working and I was re- arrested and that is why I am in prison now.
A further feature identified above for women’s rehabilitation is to consider the context in which female ex-prisoners find themselves after release and the experiences they face in daily life. For this reason, the statement by Participant Rudo reflects the needs for training or supplies that will be in demand or of use in her particular environment.
Participant Tatenda also expressed the need for self-empowerment and acquiring skills even before release from prison. After release from prison the participant was employed by Prison Fellowship Zimbabwe and this is what she had to say about her empowerment:
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In fact rehabilitation started when I was in prison as I sewed uniforms for fellow prisoners and officers. Training in other projects will help me build on the knowledge which I have already acquired. Prison Fellowship is to include projects such as sewing, computers, breeding chickens, piggery and gardening in order to help us to be self-sufficient. Women do not come to Prison Fellowship after release because they do not get the empowerment that they need.
Participant Tatenda’s story shows that female ex-prisoners in this study find themselves in a dilemma because there in nothing in place for their reintegration after their release. The underlying issue identified by all of the women is an unjust economic system that discriminates against them based on gender. If issues of employment, as well as programmes that aid female prisoners and ex-prisoners are not addressed and administered efficiently, it becomes difficult for them to integrate back into society and abide by the law when they live in poverty and struggle to survive. Consequently, there is a need for a definition of rehabilitation and reintegration that takes into account structural injustice in terms of for example education, access to resources etc., in the society.
Given the above, a definition of rehabilitation from the perspective of the three theories underpinning this study should have the following features: first, it should include the aspect of pastoral care, which covers healing, sustaining, guiding and reconciling. From a feminist pastoral care position, rehabilitation should in addition be empowering, nurturing and liberating, giving the women a fundamental feeling of self-worth. As noted by Sutherland and Cresser (1978:558), often “all a prisoner has left is her sense of identity and if it should be taken away from her in the name of rehabilitation, or treatment, she will have lost everything.” Second, such a definition should incorporate the question of gender- sensitivity. Rehabilitation cannot be defined without taking into account the gender of those being rehabilitated. This is discussed in more detail in the next section. Third, the context (i.e., the socio-political, cultural and economic environment) from which those being rehabilitated come and into which they will return after release, should be considered. Dissel (2008:156) stresses that rehabilitation involves transforming those aspects of the offender that could lead to recidivism. However, as highlighted by feminist cultural hermeneutics, there is also the need for the transformation of the society itself, in
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particular the religio-cultural aspects which shape it, to bring about more equity between men and women. This equity is demanded by the theory of feminist theological anthropology, which promotes an understanding of the fundamental value of all humanity and a re-examination of the nature of women so that female convicts are not simply condemned for having deviated from the assumed feminine “norm”. Furthermore, rehabilitation comprises reintegration, which refers to the process of returning the offender to a full and productive participation in community life (Dissel 2008:156), which is particularly important, given the central role of communality in the African context.
These three points on the definition of what rehabilitation is, are now used to give a gendered analysis of current rehabilitation theories, which will enable drawing out those features which are deemed to be of use in rehabilitating female prisoners and ex-prisoners, especially in the Zimbabwean setting. First however, the requirement for gender- sensitivity in the rehabilitation process is discussed in more detail.