EVALUATING COMMUNITY-BASED REHABILITATION FOR CHILD OFFENDERS IN MALAYSIA: CHALLENGES FACED BY COMMUNITY AGENTS
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.22452/Keywords:
community-based rehabilitation, community agents, child offenders, diversion approach, juvenile justice systemAbstract
Community agents play a pivotal role in the rehabilitation of child offenders, highlighting the importance of community-based rehabilitation as an effective strategy for supporting this population. Countries that are signatories to international child welfare conventions, including Malaysia, actively involve various community agents such as families, educational institutions, religious organisations, and non-governmental organisations (NGOs) in implementing community-based rehabilitation programmes. To examine the challenges these agents encountered, a qualitative survey was conducted in Kuala Lumpur. The survey was conducted among nine children subject to the Bond of Good Behaviour Order and selected community agents responsible for its implementation, including probation officers, counsellors, court advisors for the Court for Children, parents, and guardians. In-depth interviews were conducted using a structured protocol to collect primary data, which was analysed through manual coding. The study identified several critical challenges that hinder the effectiveness of community agents in delivering rehabilitation programmes. These challenges comprise the lack of a standardised community-based rehabilitation module, bureaucratic obstacles, limited participation of informal community agents, insufficient multi-agency coordination, and the changing nature and severity of child offences. The findings emphasise the urgent need for empowerment initiatives to enhance community agents' capacity to implement rehabilitation programmes for child offenders effectively. Such empowerment is necessary to ensure these programmes achieve their goals and to enhance these agents' responsibilities.
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