The 177th International Senior Seminar (Online)“Preventing Reoffending through a Multi-stakeholder Approach”
1. Duration and Participants
From 12 January to 3 February 2022
19 overseas participants from 12 jurisdictions
2. Programme Overview
As stipulated in the Kyoto Declaration, preventing reoffending through a multistakeholder approach is an important theme in the criminal justice field internationally.
This seminar aims to promote these efforts in participating countries, by sharing
experiences and discussing (i) case disposition and penalties with due regard torehabilitative perspectives and (ii) tailoring intervention, treatment and support toindividual needs by effectively incorporating inter-agency cooperation and publicprivate partnerships.
This programme was exclusively conducted online due to the Covid-19
pandemic.
3. The Content of the Programme(1) Lectures and other presentations
The participants were from a wide range of time zones, including Asia, Africa andLatin America, and they needed to continue their professional and family duties during
the seminar. Therefore, all lectures were recorded in advance and broadcast on-demandin order to allow participants to view lectures at their convenience. After watching theon-demand lectures, participants were required to submit questions or comments via an
online learning management system, and their questions were answered in Q&A live
sessions with the respective lecturers. This way, we tried to ensure both convenienceand interactivity in lectures.
The lectures were firstly delivered by UNAFEI professors on the criminal justicesystem in Japan, as well as on specific topics relating to this seminar such as promoting
measures for reducing reoffending, non-custodial sentences, assessment and re-entry
support. After that, the specialist lectures and ad hoc lecturers were delivered, followed
by Q&A sessions. Furthermore, as a special session, eight Japanese volunteer probation
officers were invited to share their experience as community volunteers.

Specialist Lecturer• Dr. Will Hughes
Senior Lecturer in Criminology
London Metropolitan University, United Kingdom“Community sentences for rehabilitation of offenders and preventingreoffending”“Multi-stakeholder approaches for effective supervision and support ofoffenders”
Ad Hoc Lecturers• Mr. HONDA Yuichiro
Public Prosecutor
Chief, Social Reintegration Support OfficeGeneral Affairs Department, Tokyo District Public Prosecutors’ Office“Efforts of the Social Reintegration Support Office”• Mr. SUZUKI Takayuki

Specialist
Correction Bureau, Ministry of JusticeandMr. TOMIZAWA Satoshi
Official
Correction Bureau, Ministry of Justice“Public-Private Partnership in Employment Support”(2) Group Workshops
Participants were divided into four groups considering their time zones, IndividualPresentations topics and professional backgrounds.
Individual Presentations
Participants shared the practices and the challenges in their respective countries
regarding the theme of the seminar through their individual presentations. All
the presentations were recorded and uploaded online so that participants inother groups could watch them afterwards.
Discussions
Built on the knowledge gained through lectures and individual presentations, theparticipants engaged in live discussions to explore more about the theme of theseminar. The subtopics discussed were: (i) Imposition of penalties and casedispositions with due regard to rehabilitative perspectives and (ii) Interventions,
treatment and support tailored to offenders’ individual needs, with sufficientconsideration of a multi-stakeholder approach. Participants shared challenges
and good practices in their respective countries with group members, anddiscussed the root causes and necessary actions for common challenges.
Overview of the discussions were as follows:•Imposition of penalties and case dispositions with due regard torehabilitative perspectives
Although it is necessary to ensure due process and proportionality in imposing
penalties and case dispositions, the participants reaffirmed the importance ofeffective use of non-custodial measures as far as possible since they can avoid
the negative impact of imprisonment on rehabilitation of offenders and facilitate
their social reintegration. They shared the legal basis for non-custodial measures,including the applicable options, criteria, discretionary power given to judges,
prosecutors etc. It was reported that the existence of laws that provide noncustodial options does not necessarily mean they are fully used in practice. Many
factors that would affect the active use of non-custodial measures were discussed,
such as the necessity of sentencing guidelines, appropriate assessment required
for appropriate use of non-custodial measures, the authority to implement noncustodial sentence in the community and collaboration with community partners
who can support offenders. It was also noted that efforts should be made forproviding adequate capacity-building and promoting understanding forrehabilitation of offenders among judiciary and law enforcement officers.
• Interventions, treatment and support tailored to offenders’ individual needs
To make interventions, treatment and support for offenders most effective,
participants recognized the importance of assessment throughout the criminal
justice process to identify the individual needs of offenders. Various socioeconomic factors relating to crime, such as poverty, isolation, association with

gangs and other forms of organized crime, etc. were considered. Participants
stressed the importance of support for employment, education and various
support in collaboration with stakeholders to reintegrate offenders into thecommunity, but various challenges which hamper rehabilitation and social
reintegration of offenders were also discussed. In prisons, for example,
overcrowding was indicated as a significant factor that impedes rehabilitativeenvironments that would facilitate offender treatment, while in the community,lack of monitoring or supporting systems for released offenders, as well as
resources to fulfil them, were discussed. Furthermore, many participants
regarded the issue of general perceptions of offenders as critically important,since prevailing punitive attitudes would make it difficult to engage various
stakeholders in supporting offender rehabilitation. Therefore, government
initiatives not only for promoting inter-agency coordination and community
engagement in supporting offender rehabilitation but also for raising awarenessfor importance of offender rehabilitation were emphasized.
4. Feedback from the Participants
At the end of the seminar, we invited feedback from all participants. They
said that, even though conducted online, they learned a lot from lectures and group
discussions, and many of them indicated that the seminar served as an opportunity
to reaffirm the importance of incorporating rehabilitative perspectives and multistakeholder approaches in their respective professional areas. They also indicatedthat, if it were conducted in person, they would learn more about the Japanesesystem and practice by visiting relevant institutions in Japan.
5. Comments from the Programming Officer
This seminar discussed the theme of preventing reoffending. In order toreduce reoffending, a wide range of individual and social factors which wouldinduce or deter crime should be addressed. It cannot be achieved only by efforts ofpenal institutions. It requires active involvement of relevant agencies with various
expertise, as well as various community resources.
In order to ensure that the “multi-stakeholder approach” is not just empty
words, key persons are required to make a difference in their systems and practices.
The participants in this seminar fully understood the concept of the theme and werehighly motivated to learn from the experiences of other countries and lectures.
They showed great discernment in analysing their current systems and practices,and they recognized the need to review their systems and practices from theviewpoint of offender rehabilitation, with due attention to society and human rights.
I believe such sincere attitudes towards learning stimulated their discussions, andI learned a lot from the participants.
International Senior Seminar invites high-ranked policymakers andpractitioners, and it provides them with a great opportunity to learn deeply about
important themes in criminal justice. I hope that the knowledge, thoughts and new
perspectives on reducing reoffending gained in this 177th seminar will be gradually
disseminated to various stakeholders in their respective countries, leading toward
a global society in which “no one will be left behind” as envisaged in the SDGs.