“I couldn’t have done it without my leader (at the rehab centre), Jeremiah Pandian, whom I got in contact with through Malaysian Care. The project aspires to motivate and rebuild the lives of ex-offenders by encouraging society to give them a second chance and a helping hand to earn an honest living; and enable them to reintegrate well into society. “Society doesn’t seem to think that criminals deserve a second chance, ” says Wong whose rehabilitation centre currently has 10 ex-offenders aged between 22 and 60. Malaysian care has been working with prisoners and ex-offenders for 40 years and hopes to remove stigma about ex-offenders, says Dr Wong. Giving backThe biggest challenge, is convincing employers and society to give ex-offenders a second chance, says TYP’s Lim who has been with Malaysian Care since 2009.

Source: The Star July 14, 2021 02:00 UTC