Kyoto Declarationon
Community Volunteers Supporting Offender Reintegration

IMAFUKU Shoji
Director General
Rehabilitation Bureau
Ministry of JusticeJapan

The World Congress forCommunity Volunteers Supporting Offender Reintegration

Presentation
1 What is the core value of VPO system?
2 How can we interpret the value of the VPO concept to other countries?
3 What are the differences between jurisdictions in the tasks and organisation of VPOs?
4 How are questions like recruitment, selection, health and safety, training, and evaluation managed?
5 In what direction should community volunteers be developed?
Panel Discussion
Adoption of the Kyoto Hogoshi Declaration

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Community Volunteers

Supporting Offender ReintegrationJapan

Who are the community
volunteers?
Philippines

HOGOSHI
Volunteer
Probation
Officers

Volunteer
Probation
Assistants

Kenya

Thailand

OffendersCommunity
Probation
Volunteers

Canada, Europe

CoSA

BBS
WARA

Cooperating
Employers

International Network of Community
Volunteers Supporting Offender
Reintegration
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Community Volunteers

Supporting Offender Reintegration
What is the core values of community volunteers?
1. Private citizens and organizations with the purpose of supporting therehabilitation of offenders
Working with government probation officers
Good neighbours’ point of view

2. Equipped with key concept of volunteers
Spontaneity
Sociality
Unpaid volunteer
42Community Volunteers

Supporting Offender Reintegration
What is the core values of community volunteers?
3. Dimension of Community Volunteers
Community-elected volunteers
Rebuilding the relationship between the offender and the community
Utilizing various social resources, both formally and informally, in the community
community-based volunteers
Understanding the culture, lifestyle and values of the same community

Very important role of building a community where people can relate toand help each other with the various challenges of living in lonelinessand social isolation

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Kyoto Declaration on

Community Volunteers Supporting Offender Reintegration
Preamble Paragraph 1
Acknowledging the “2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development”, theDoha Declaration and the declaration of each United Nations Congress
on Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice, the relevant United Nations
standards and norms in the area of crime prevention and criminal
justice, in particular the United Nations Standard Minimum Rules for
Non-custodial Measures (the Tokyo Rules), which encourages public
participation as an essential element to keep ties and foster solidarity
among offenders, their families and the community,,

Provisions for the utilization of community volunteers and the
public participation in offender reintegration
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Kyoto Declaration on

Community Volunteers Supporting Offender Reintegration
Preamble Paragraph 2
Recalling the Asia Volunteer Probation Officers Meeting held in Tokyoin 2014, in which Volunteer Probation Officers from Japan, Korea, thePhilippines, Singapore and Thailand, as well as observers from China
and Kenya, shared practices and challenges of their countries’
volunteer probation officers programmes and recognized theimportance of the role of volunteer probation officers, and its Tokyo
Declaration, which called for the establishment of a global network ofvolunteer probation officers and their continued mutual cooperation,

Asia VPO Meetings as our previous efforts and Tokyo Declaration
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Kyoto Declaration on

Community Volunteers Supporting Offender Reintegration
Preamble Paragraph 3
Recognizing the fact that the hogoshi system, which has beendeveloped with the vitality of private citizens and institutionalized inJapan for over a century and is one of the most successful andpractical systems of community volunteers supporting offender
reintegration in the world, now catches the global spotlight as one of
the effective measures for achieving the reintegration of offenders,and furthermore the prevention of crime and construction of peacefuland secure communities,

Hogoshi system as one of the most successful and practicalmodels with a long history for effective offender reintegration
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Kyoto Declaration on

Community Volunteers Supporting Offender Reintegration
Preamble Paragraph 4
Noting the efforts which have been made by the community volunteers
such as community probation volunteers in Kenya, volunteer
probation assistants in the Philippines and volunteer probation
officers in Thailand, and other community volunteers supporting
offender supervision and reintegration in Asia, Europe and North
America, for the development of effective partnership between thecriminal justice practitioners and the general public in respective
countries and regions,

Various pragmatic and outstanding efforts by community
volunteers in Asia, Africa, Europe and North America
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Kyoto Declaration on

Community Volunteers Supporting Offender Reintegration
Operative Paragraph
1. We recognize the pivotal role of community support and public
understanding for the promotion of offender supervision andrehabilitation, the encouragement of a sound life of ex-offenders as
members of the community, and the prevention of reoffending.

Pivotal role of community support and public understanding for
offender rehabilitation through our experience
105Kyoto Declaration on

Community Volunteers Supporting Offender Reintegration
Operative Paragraph
2. We recognize the value of community volunteers such as hogoshi whointeract with and provide support for offenders as fellow citizens working withprofessional probation officers who have expert knowledge. They stand side
by side with offenders from the good neighbour’s point of view, attentively
listen to their concerns, develop mutual trust, and give guidance to them attimes warmly, at times strictly. Their support enables offenders to re-establish
their identities, re-enter the community and live their lives independently
without reoffending.

Good neighbour’s point of view, mutual trust, etc. as the valueof community volunteers
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Kyoto Declaration on

Community Volunteers Supporting Offender Reintegration
Operative Paragraph
3. We recognize the effort of such community volunteers is in line with theprinciple of “No one will be left behind” which is encapsulated in the “2030
Agenda for Sustainable Development” adopted by the United Nations in 2015.
We are convinced that more global efforts have to be made internationally toshed light on and promote the significant role of community volunteers.

The effort of community volunteers is indispensable for theachievement of “the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development”.
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Kyoto Declaration on

Community Volunteers Supporting Offender Reintegration
Operative Paragraph
4. In order to achieve the above-mentioned purposes, we invite the United
Nations Commission on Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice (CCPCJ) tobuild an international network of community volunteers in the supervisionand reintegration of offenders, to provide technical assistance and to urge
member states to enact laws to anchor community volunteers for the purposeof fostering volunteering, raising awareness among the public andestablishing systems of community volunteers. We also invite the CCPCJ toformulate a United Nations model strategy for reducing reoffending in orderto tackle issues on reoffending and encourage the utilization of thecommunity volunteers in this field, and to establish the International Day for
Community Volunteers Supporting Offender Reintegration, “Hogoshi Day”.

International network, technical assistance, legalization, model
strategy and the International Day for Community Volunteers
Supporting Offender Reintegration (“HOGOSHI Day”)

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Kyoto Declaration on

Community Volunteers Supporting Offender Reintegration
Operative Paragraph
5. In order to follow up this declaration, we will gather regularly toreview its implementation and to provide a permanent stimulus for thedevelopment of community volunteers in offender reintegration.

Implementation and follow-up of the Kyoto Declaration on
Community Volunteers Supporting Offender Reintegration
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Kyoto Declaration on

Community Volunteers Supporting Offender Reintegration

For further development...
I.

Advancement of international recognition of community volunteers
supporting offender reintegration through international networks ofcommunity volunteers

II. Establishment of effective community volunteer systems in offender
reintegration around the world by appropriate technical assistanceIII. Establishment of the International Day for Community Volunteers
Supporting Offender Reintegration , “Hogoshi Day”
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Thank you for your attention!

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The Kyoto Declaration on
Community Volunteers Supporting Offender Reintegration
IMAFUKU SHOJI
Director General
Rehabilitation Bureau
Ministry of JusticeJapan(Slide 1) Introduction
Good afternoon, distinguished delegates, ladies and gentlemen.
It is my great pleasure and honour to have an opportunity to
speak in front of the distinguished international delegates
attending this Congress including online participants.
Today, as the organizer of this World Congress, I would like toexplain the concept of the Kyoto Declaration on Community
Volunteers Supporting Offender Reintegration which we aim to
adopt at the end of this Congress.
(Slide 2)
First, I would like to talk about the purpose of the Kyoto
Declaration on Community Volunteers Supporting Offender
Reintegration. I would like to call it “the Kyoto Hogoshi
Declaration” in short.
In the panel discussion, we will share how the various efforts,
results and issues that community volunteers supporting
offender reintegration have developed around the world.
Considering the significance and necessity of such community
volunteers to participate in efforts to prevent recidivism, Ibelieve that it is an urgent matter to disseminate these systems
around the world. To this end, I am proposing to adopt the Kyoto
Hogoshi Declaration at the end of this panel discussion.
(Slide 3)
Next, I would like to talk about the definition of “community
volunteers supporting offender reintegration” in the Kyoto
Hogoshi Declaration.
Although we do not have a strict definition, typical examples ofcommunity volunteers include Japan’s hogoshi, "community
probation volunteers" in Kenya, "volunteer probation assistants"in the Philippines, "volunteer probation officers" in Thailand, andCircles of Support and Accountability (CoSA) in North America
and Europe. Of course, in Japan, there are community
volunteers
such as the Women's Association for
Rehabilitation Aid or the BBS Association, as well as hogoshi.
(Slide 4)
Here, I would like to touch upon the concepts that lie at the core
principle of these activities.
The first point is that they are private citizens and organizations
with the purpose of supporting offender reintegration. The
activities are carried out in collaboration with a government
probation officers. While the government probation officers arein a position to have authority as law enforcement officers,
community volunteers stand side-by-side with offenders fromthe perspective of good neighbours, and nobly offer voluntary
support for their rehabilitation. These features are proven to bevery effective in motivating offenders to reintegrate into society.

Second, these private citizens and organizations possess thethree elements commonly cited as key concepts of volunteerism,
which are free choice to undertake, positive outcome to thecommunity, and without expectation of payment.
For example, one Japanese volunteer probation officer, hogoshi,
said, (quote) “By continuing to work as a hogoshi, we becomea real hogoshi.” (unquote) What is the driving force that keeps
him going? He also said, (quote) "I could grow as a person
through service as a hogoshi.”(unquote) In other words, theiractivities are characterized by the fact that they are motivatedto make others happy as well as themselves by extending ahelping hand. This is their motivation to make themselves happyby helping others.
Japan's hogoshi, as well as community volunteers around theworld have their own unique histories. I believe that they all
share these same core values. In the panel discussion, I would
like to draw your attention to how these core values are
discussed by the panelists.
(Slide 5)
Third, it is also important to have the dimensions of community
volunteers as a principle of their core activities.
The rehabilitation of offenders is not completed within the penal
institutions, but is achieved only when they are re-integrated in
the community and lead a stable life free from recidivism. This
is where the presence of community-based volunteers play animportant role.

Community-recommended volunteers, together with otherstakeholders in the community, play the central role in building
a network of supervision and support for offenders. They also
rebuild the relationship between the offender and thecommunity, by utilizing various social resources, both formallyand informally, in the community.
In addition, the community-based volunteers support theoffenders to overcome many challenges faced in their path ofrehabilitation, while understanding their culture, sense of lifeand values of the same community as their neighbors in thecommunity.
Furthermore, as a representative of the community, the goal of
their activities is to build a safe and secure community that isresilient against crime and delinquency. Being a community
volunteer means that they are willing to take on the very
important role of building a community where people can relate
to and help one another.
(Slide 6)
With these conceptualizations as a premise, I would now like toexplain the main points of the Kyoto Hogoshi Declaration,
paragraph by paragraph.
The Kyoto Hogoshi Declaration consists of preamble andoperative paragraphs.
First, please look at the preamble paragraphs. The firstparagraph lists international standards and norms, including the2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the Doha
Declaration and the Tokyo Rules. All of these point out theimportanceofmulti-stakeholder
partnerships,
publicunderstanding, and public participation, and also provides
important perspectives on the effective reintegration of
offenders into society.
For example, Article 19, paragraph 2 of the Tokyo Rules
recommends that it is very important for the smooth
implementation of non-custodial measures and the preventionof recidivism that community volunteers, who have extensive
information about the community and available resources, fully
demonstrate these aforementioned characteristics.
Although not explicitly stated in the draft, as mentioned in thewelcome remarks by the Justice Minister, the Kyoto Declaration
adopted this morning is the first political declaration to focus on
multi-stakeholder partnerships in the prevention of recidivism,
and I am confident that it will effectively guide the Kyoto Hogoshi
Declaration into concrete practice.
(Slide 7)
The second paragraph of the preamble states that we should
recall the “Tokyo Declaration”, adopted at the very first Asia
VPO Meeting held in Tokyo in 2014. The Tokyo Declaration was
adopted by Japan, Korea, the Philippines, Singapore andThailand, as well as observers from China and Kenya. It was
ground-breaking in that it called for the establishment of aninternational network of volunteer probation officers, officially.
The Kyoto Hogoshi Declaration is formulated based on theTokyo Declaration, and it is systematically taking more specificand proactive initiatives to achieve the goal, as well.

(Slide 8)
The third paragraph of the preamble reviews how the “hogoshi
system” was developed in Japan. As repeatedly mentioned inprevious speeches, Japan’s hogoshi system has played an
indispensable role in offender rehabilitation in Japan. The
system has enjoyed widespread public support over 130 years,
as one of the effective measures for offender reintegration, andas one of the measures effective in creating safe and securecommunities.
The principles of the hogoshi system are of universal value incriminal justice in countries around the world, overcoming thedifference of their systems and cultural backgrounds. The
underlying concept of hogoshi system has universal value incriminal justice, and had an impact on the development ofcommunity volunteer systems in countries with different
institutions and cultural backgrounds. Thus, this paragraphdescribes such recognition.
(Slide 9)
The last paragraph of the preamble confirms that the Kyoto
Hogoshi Declaration aims to develop these effective
approaches based on the practices accumulated by community
volunteers around the world, and create an international
network of the volunteers.
For example, as mentioned earlier, community volunteers areplaying important roles in countries such as Kenya, thePhilippines and Thailand. Circles of Support and Accountability(CoSA) is a group of professional volunteers who help sex
offenders reintegrate into society upon their release from penal
institutions, and is a common initiative in Europe and North

America.
These approaches will be presented by panellists fromrespective countries in today's panel discussion.
(Slide 10)
I will now move on to an explanation of the operative
paragraphs of the Kyoto Hogoshi Declaration.
In the first paragraph, it is clearly stated that the basic
understanding that appropriate operation of the offender
rehabilitation system, requires support and understanding fromthe community. This is, as mentioned earlier, the principle thatemphasizes usefulness of community volunteers in supporting
offender rehabilitation.
(Slide 11)
The second paragraph, points out one of the characteristics andvalues of community volunteers supporting offenders from theperspective of good neighbours. They are working withoffenders based on the stance of these community volunteers
as residents of the same community. They are listening
attentively to how offenders see things from their own point ofview, trying to open up their heart and concerns, building trust,and providing guidance and advice, sometimes warmly,
sometimes strictly. By these efforts of community volunteers,
the offender has an opportunity to reestablish offenders identity.
In light of the findings of the desistance theory, which has
attracted much attention in recent years in the study of offender
treatment, this fact touches upon important matters for effective
treatment.

(Slide 12)
The third paragraph makes it clear that in order to achieve theSDGs, it is extremely important that the activities of community
volunteers become more active and that their approach is
widely disseminated throughout the world.
These community volunteer efforts are aimed at realizing asociety in which "no one will be left behind," which is the basic
principle of the SDGs, and their efforts can be seen as one of
the best practices of multi-stakeholder partnerships, which is afundamental approach to realize an inclusive society.
The importance of public participation in prevention of crime anddelinquency was pointed out at the Kyoto Congress held in 1970
a half century ago, and Japan's hogoshi system was taken up
as a good practice. The Kyoto Hogoshi Declaration, further
emphasizing this point, is drafted with the understanding that
this approach of proactively utilizing community volunteers isessential from the contemporary perspective of serious efforts
to achieve the SDGs.
(Slide 13)
In the last two paragraphs, the Kyoto Hogoshi Declaration
proposes specific matters for which the cooperation andinitiative of the international community and the United Nations
should be continued to seek in the future.
In other words, we request the United Nations Commission on
Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice to take some specificactions in order to promote more activities, awareness andinstitutional development on community volunteerism.

The first is to build an international network of community
volunteers in the supervision and reintegration of offenders.
The second is to provide technical assistance to member states,
and to encourage the Institutionalization of community
volunteer systems. The third is to formulate a United Nations
model strategy for reducing recidivism in order to tackle issues
on recidivism and encourage the utilization of the community
volunteers in this field.
The last is to establish the "International Day of Community
Volunteers Supporting Offender Reintegration”, “Hogoshi Day”.
(Slide 14)
The last paragraph clearly states that we will continue to follow
up on this declaration to ensure that it is implemented
systematically. To this end, we would like to meet regularly inthe future to review its implementation and constantly
encourage the development of a community volunteer system.
(Slide 15)
Lastly, let me point out our current challenges which areimportant for the further development of community volunteers.
The first is that it is important to build an international networkof community volunteers, and to promote internationalrecognition of this network. I firmly believe that the Kyoto
Hogoshi Declaration will open up the door to inclusive society
where each one of us can live in peace and harmony, which isthe aim of the SDGs.

Secondly, we need to encourage effective community volunteer
systems to support offender reintegration around the world withappropriate technical assistance. Needless to say, suchinternational cooperation takes the cultural background andlegal system of the recipient country into account.
Finally, the establishment of the International Day for
Community Volunteers Supporting Offender Reintegration,
Hogoshi Day, is a must for encouraging and promoting theactivities of community volunteers around the world. Under thebanner of this Hogoshi Day, I sincerely hope that theinternational solidarity and cooperation of all member states will
be realized to rehabilitate offenders, prevent recidivism, andrealize an inclusive society where no one is left behind.
(Slide 16)
In closing, as the organizer of this World Congress, I sincerely
hope that the Kyoto Hogoshi Declaration will be adopted andthat we will continue to work hand in hand with the people of theworld so we can steadily achieve the desired results bysystematically implementing specific actions based on the
Declaration.
Thank you very much for your kind attention.