Op-Ed | The Long and Arduous Road Home for Youths Under Reformatory Education

Some time ago, while visiting a juvenile correctional institution, a dedicated guidance counselor mentioned the family of a child who was about to be released. Taking advantage of the child's placement in reformatory education, the parents had moved without leaving a new address or phone number. Unable to reach the vanished parents and worried that the child would have nowhere to stay upon release, the counselor began searching for resources, hoping to plead with kind-hearted individuals to provide accommodation and work, in search of a substitute family for the child.

The Ethical Tragedies of Television Dramas Are Daily Realities for Youths Under Reformatory Education

Behind every youth undergoing reformatory education lies a story. Breaking the law is merely the final outward behavior. While the causes vary, entering a juvenile correctional institution immediately reveals the stark differences in each person's family of origin. Some parents visit regularly every week, bringing food, books, and sending custody money, brimming with affection; impoverished parents, limited by distance and financial means, can only manage to visit occasionally despite their best efforts. There are also families where parents and siblings have all broken the law and are incarcerated together, allowing family members to occasionally cross paths within prison walls; and there are tragic cases where the only surviving family member passes away during the reformatory period, turning the youth into an orphan overnight.

Finally, one inevitably encounters those parents who claim that their child's crimes have nothing to do with them, steadfastly refusing to visit or care for their children. They do not wish to bear any responsibility, and when the child is discharged from the institution, they are unwilling to pick them up. When the court orders them to pay reformatory and upbringing expenses, they fly into a rage, refuse to pay, and even demand that the court collect the fees directly from the child. Encountering such parents often leaves correctional institutions and courts exasperated and helpless. As exasperated as they may be, their hearts also ache for the child's feelings.

Where Do These Children Belong?

Article 67 of the Protection of Children and Youths Welfare and Rights Act (hereinafter referred to as the "Children and Youths Rights Act") explicitly stipulates that municipal and county competent authorities shall continuously provide necessary welfare services for children, youths, and their families involved in juvenile protection and criminal cases handled in accordance with the Juvenile Justice Act. Article 68 stipulates that municipal and county competent authorities shall provide follow-up counseling for at least one year to children, youths, and their families whose placement and guidance or reformatory education under the Juvenile Justice Act has concluded, ceased, or been exempted, or who have been referred for guidance.

In fact, aside from a few low-income, disadvantaged families, social welfare does not specially open cases to serve families simply because a child has been sent to reformatory education, let alone assist with family reconstruction. Furthermore, follow-up counseling after the conclusion of reformatory education primarily focuses on the youth as the main service recipient, making it exceedingly difficult to simultaneously address their family problems.

Assisting Youths Unable to Return Home in Learning to Live Independently

In accordance with the Children and Youths Rights Act, municipal and county governments all have independent living adaptation assistance programs for youths—such as assistance with moving into independent living dormitories, schooling or employment counseling, and various subsidies and allowances (living assistance allowances, rent and deposits, tuition and miscellaneous fees, transportation fees, license examination fees, medical fees, health insurance premiums, etc.). However, the service age for independent living adaptation programs is mostly capped at 20 years old, and resources vary across counties and cities. When encountering cases older than 20, or those whose household registration is in counties and cities lacking independent living dormitories and insufficient subsidy funds, there arises a need to seek help from non-systemic, kind-hearted individuals. Yet, the companionship and sense of belonging that children need most cannot necessarily be met by extra-systemic resources.

Writing this, the faces of two children instantly flash in my mind. The first child met his incarcerated father at a juvenile detention center operating in conjunction with a branch prison. Afterward, the child was transferred to reformatory education, and upon his release from prison, the father neither visited nor contacted him. The next time news of the father was heard, it was of his death. When he turned 21 and was due to be discharged from the institution, he had no family left to rely on. Through the help of a social worker entrusted by the court for guidance, a labor dispatch company providing accommodation was found, giving him a place to live and work to support himself. Such a life was not easy; after enduring for a period, he reoffended and returned to prison.

The second child, while serving a sentence of imprisonment at a correctional school, suffered the misfortune of his mother's passing. Because paroled youths are not service recipients of social welfare independent living or post-release follow-up guidance, he relied without close relatives on a senior student who had been paroled earlier, following him into engineering work. In his spare time, he practiced musical instruments because he would participate in remote-area performances with a service club organized by the correctional school's art teachers. Year after year of participation turned the club into his family and spiritual reliance. Several years after his case was closed, I would occasionally spot his figure in service photos on the club's fan page, and knowing he was doing well brought a warmth to my heart.

Helping Unattached Youths Learn Independent Living to Reduce Recidivism Rates

Juvenile correctional institutions should incorporate independent living training into their curricula, teaching children the knowledge and skills needed for independent living in advance during the reformatory period. Independent living training—including daily routine planning and management, financial management, rental capabilities, furniture repair skills, simple cooking skills, household cleaning, personal hygiene and health management, employment concepts, social skills, emotional adjustment capabilities, and so on—constitutes basic skills that every adolescent should learn during their growth process. Currently, welfare placement institutions provide independent living training to cases about to complete placement; juvenile correctional institutions, sharing a similar institutional format, should follow suit. This not only helps children prepare for departure and independence but also facilitates the subsequent connection of social welfare independent services.

Secondly, it is suggested that when courts review applications for the cessation or exemption of reformatory education submitted by juvenile correctional institutions, they should order juvenile probation officers to assess the juvenile's conditions and needs and assist in contacting social welfare or related units to facilitate social reintegration. At the same time, this can help independent living social workers establish relationships with the youths. Doing so will undoubtedly enhance the youths' social stability and moderately reduce recidivism rates.

Finally, we must return to the resources of social welfare independent living adaptation programs. Judging from the aforementioned cases, whether someone is there to provide companionship serves as a crucial key to whether unattached youths establish social connections and successfully reintegrate. While social welfare should not be expected to expand services infinitely, if we could break age restrictions for "youths unable to return home" and uniformly provide post-discharge follow-up counseling and independent living services for one year, assisting and accompanying them until they stabilize before withdrawing resources, we could truly help the children who need it most.

The road home for youths under reformatory education is long and arduous, and its hardships are beyond what ordinary people can comprehend. It is hoped that the government and the general public can jointly ponder constructive solutions so that every child can smoothly find their sense of belonging.

※ Originally published in ETtoday News Cloud - Judicial Reform & Human Rights