PARTICIPANTS’ PAPERSRECRUITMENT, CAPACITY-BUILDING AND PUBLIC RECOGNITIONOF VOLUNTEER PROBATION OFFICERS
IN THE TOKYO PROBATION OFFICE
Yasuhiro Muraki＊

I. INTRODUCTION
The Japanese volunteer probation officer system was established by the Volunteer Probation Officers
Act, which is the basic law addressing the appointment, qualification, disqualification and services ofvolunteer probation officers (hereinafter, VPOs). This paper will focus on the state of developing VPOs in
the Tokyo Probation Office, which includes their recruitment process, training, capacity building and publicrecognition.

II. THE STATE OF VPOS WITHIN THE JURISDICATION OF THE
TOKYO PROBATION OFFICE
Out of 52,500 positions (the fixed number of VPOs permitted nationwide by the Volunteer ProbationOfficers Act), 4,375 positions are assigned to the Tokyo Probation Office’s jurisdiction, which amounts to
8.3% of the available VPO positions. The current actual number of VPOs within the Tokyo Probation
Office’s jurisdiction is 3,507 as of 1 January 2015. Nationwide, the VPO system is operating at 80.2% of its
full capacity of 52,500 officers.
The percentage of female VPOs in Tokyo is about 32%, which is higher than the percentage of female
VPOs (about 25%) throughout the whole country. There are 33 probation districts1 in the Tokyo Probation
Office’s jurisdiction, and local VPOs’ Associations coincide with each probation district. Together, all of thelocal VPOs’ Associations compose the Tokyo-Prefectural Federation of VPOs’ Associations.

III. RECRUITMENT PROCESS FOR VPOs
A. Finding VPO Candidates in Probation Districts
Traditionally, VPOs make full use of their community networks when recruiting new VPOs. Individual
VPOs find appropriate persons in their community to be their successors, and when their retirement age(76 years of age) arrives, they offer the person to be their successor. If the person accepts the offer, thePresident of the local VPOs Association officially recommends the person to the Probation Office. Whenmaking a recommendation, the President often attaches a letter of recommendation from the MunicipalChief.
Recently, the “VPO Candidates’ Information Meeting” has been introduced nationwide. By holding thesemeetings, local VPOs’ associations can gain wider information from the local community and find more appropriate candidates to serve as new VPOs.
Before a local VPOs Association recommends a VPO candidate to a Probation Office, the Association
confirms if the candidate meets the necessary qualifications required by the Volunteer Probation Officers
Act and other lower rank decrees (for instance, the age limit of first appointment: 66 years of age oryounger; age limit of re-appointment: younger than 76 years of age). This process demands detailed confidential information about the candidate; for instance, whether the candidate’s family supports his/heractivity as a VPO. This means that public advertisements are not considered appropriate in recruitingVPOs.
Chief Probation Officer, Tokyo Probation Office.

＊1 Article 2-1(1), Volunteer Probation Officers Act.

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B. Selection of VPOs by Government
After the above-mentioned process, the Probation Office will conduct various examinations with theconsent of the candidate. If the Director of the Probation Office confirms that the candidate is qualified,the Director of the Probation Office consults the VPOs’ Screening Commissions about the candidate’s appointment.
The VPO Screening Commission is an organ established by the Volunteer Probation Officers Act. TheCommission is established at each Probation Office, and it gives opinions to the Director of the Probation
Office regarding the appointment of VPOs based on the Director’s consultation. A Commission should becomposed of a maximum of 13 members (a maximum of 15 in the case of the Tokyo Probation Office).
According to an Ordinance of the Ministry of Justice, the member of the Commission should be selectedfrom the District Court Chief, the Family Court Chief, the Chief Prosecutor, the Chief of the bar association, a warden of a correctional facility, a representative of VPOs, the Chairperson of the Prefectural
Public Safety Commission, the chief of a prefectural school board, the Chairperson of the local social
welfare council, the Chairperson of the local labor council and scholars or other experts. In the Tokyo
Probation Office, the members are selected according to these criteria. Members of the Commission areappointed by the Minister of Justice.
The VPO candidates will be considered individually by this Commission. After receiving the Commission’s report whether or not to appoint the candidate, the Director of the Probation Office will finally
recommend the candidate to the Minister of Justice.
C. Appointment of VPOs
When a VPO is appointed by the Minister of Justice through the above-mentioned process, a certificateof appointment by the Minister of Justice will be issued. All the newly appointed VPOs will be assigned toa local VPOs’ Association. At the Tokyo Probation Office, this appointment procedure will take place fromtwo to three times a year, and from 60 to 80 persons are appointed on each occasion.
The appointment ceremonies are held at Probation Offices, and there, certificates of appointment,
letters assigning the VPO to a local VPOs’ association, VPO’s identification cards and VPOs’ identification
badges are issued.
VPOs are appointed as part-time government officials, and they are subject to the requirements of theNational Public Service Law. They are also protected by the Public Officers Accident Compensation Act.
This means that when they suffer damage in the performance of their duties, they will be compensated by
the government. However, because VPOs are private citizens by nature, the prohibition or restriction ofpolitical activities, and the Government Officials Ethics Code are not applied to VPOs.
In spite of their status as government officers, the VPO Act provides that no salary shall be paid toVPOs. Therefore, VPOs are recognized as private-citizen volunteers rather than part-time government
officers in Japanese society.
A system of restricted term of office is applied to VPOs; each term in office is for two years. However,
if a VPO is not subsequently disqualified, and if the VPO him/herself is willing to be re-appointed, and if
the probation office finds no problems with his/her re-appointment, he/she will go through the re-appointment process and will be re-appointed. Therefore, once they are appointed, they will typically be re-appointed continuously until their retiring age: 76 years old.

IV. CAPACITY BUILDING OF VPOs
(TRAINING AND OTHER LEARNING OPPORTUNITIES)Japanese rehabilitation of offenders is administered by the collaboration of professional probation officers
and VPOs. This means that the VPOs are the implementing bodies of probation/parole supervision andcrime prevention activities in the community. Therefore, capacity-building, specifically improving the offender-treatment skills of VPOs, is considered to be crucial in enhancing rehabilitation services.
The VPO Act provides that “VPOs shall be conscious of their mission, make efforts to develop a note86

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worthy character and broad vision and acquire the knowledge and skills necessary for performance oftheir duties”. Therefore, various training programmes are provided for VPOs.
A. Training Provided by Probation Offices
Probation Offices provide training for VPOs as follows: a) Initial training course for newly appointedVPOs; b) Basic treatment skills training course for VPOs who have less than 2 years’ experience as VPOs;c) Treatment skill enforcement training course for VPOs who have 2 to 4 years’ experience as VPOs; d)Special training course for acquiring specific treatment skills; and e) Local probation area periodic training,which is held at local levels, to which all the VPOs assigned to the area must participate). These trainings
are conducted by the probation office periodically, or according to stages of each VPO’s experience. Professional probation officers usually serve as trainers/lecturers for these training programmes.
B. Seminars Planned by VPOs’ Associations (Independent Seminars)
Each local VPOs’ association plans and conducts seminars (so-called independent seminars). The
contents of the seminar vary according to the needs of the VPOs’ association. For instance, they sometimes
invite local police officers or local school teachers as lecturers to learn more about the status of the local
area to which they belong. They may also conduct case-study workshops on probation cases. They may
also hold initial workshops for newly appointed VPOs in the local area. Study trips to related agencies suchas correctional facilities are also options. At a local association’s request, Probation Offices cooperate in theimplementation of these seminars by sending professional probation officers as lecturers or advisors.
C. VPO’s Capacity Building by Probation Officers through Daily Practice
Probation officers’ duties include giving advice in managing VPOs’ Associations or serving as trainersof VPOs as well as supervising individual probationers or parolees. Probation officers, while working collaboratively with VPOs, continuously communicate with and actively give advice to VPOs regarding thetreatment of individual offenders or the management of VPOs’ associations. These active communications
between probation officers and VPOs are very meaningful to improve VPOs’ treatment skills and to enrichtheir knowledge.
D. Self-Development of VPOs by Local Treatment Meetings at Rehabilitation Support Centers
Sometimes, VPOs hold treatment meetings in their assigned probation area in order to share information about their assigned probationers/parolees, specifically when their assigned probationers/parolees areaccomplices of the offence. The VPOs can also discuss the management of their association at thetreatment meetings. These meetings are often held at Rehabilitation Support Centers. At these centers,experienced VPOs are stationed so that the newly appointed VPOs can seek assistance from the experienced VPOs stationed at the center. The experienced VPOs can even sit beside the newly appointed VPOs
when interviewing the offenders at the center. This way, VPOs learn from each other and develop theirown skills by helping each other at the local level.

V. PUBLIC RECOGNITION OF VPOs (COMMENDATION)
Article 16 of the VPOs Act provides that “The Minister of Justice shall give consideration to commending volunteer probation officers, Volunteer Probation Officers’ Associations, and Federations of Volunteer
Probation Officers’ Associations [that] have rendered distinguished service, . . . giving publicity to suchservice.” Hence, various commendations are established for VPOs. Probation Offices hold commendation
ceremonies annually for the VPOs and other volunteers involved in rehabilitation services.
A. Guidelines for Commendation at the Tokyo Probation Office
The guidelines for commendation at the Tokyo Probation Office award commendations to those whohave rendered distinguished service. The following list describes the commendations awarded.
a) Commendation from the President of the Tokyo Prefectural Federation of VPOs’ Associations.
b) Commendation from the Director of the Tokyo Probation Office.
c) Commendation from the President of the Kanto Regional Federation of VPOs87

RESOURCE MATERIAL SERIES No. 96d) Commendation from the Chairman of the Kanto Regional Parole Boarde) Commendation from the President of the National Federation of VPOsf) Commendation from the Minister of Justice.
Among those who had been commended by the Minister of Justice, some VPOs will be granted thefollowing decorations and medals of honour.
g) Blue Ribbon Medalh) Regular Decoration.
As shown above, VPOs will firstly be commended at the local level (VPO association and government),
and then at the prefectural levels, (VPO association and the government), regional level and then at thenational level. In rare cases, Blue Ribbon Medals or decorations are given.
In Japan, receiving medals or decoration of honours is considered to be a status symbol. This meansthat the government acknowledges the distinguished importance and the difficult nature of the VPO’s activities.
B. Commendation Ceremony
The commendation of VPOs is thought to be important because it has the effect of improving VPO motivation. Hence, Probation Offices hold commendation ceremonies annually for the VPOs and other volunteers involved in rehabilitation services that received official commendation within that year.
At these ceremonies, besides VPOs, members of the Women’s Association of Rehabilitation Aid, BigBrothers Big Sisters (BBS) members, cooperative employers or VPOs’ families who had contributed to rehabilitation activities are presented certificates of appreciation.
At the Tokyo Probation Office, more than 100 persons are recognized each year; therefore, theceremony is quite large. High-level officials involved in rendering rehabilitation services, including the Director-General of the Rehabilitation Bureau and the Chairman of the Kanto Regional Parole Board; officials
from the criminal justice sector, including the Chief Prosecutor of the Tokyo District Prosecutors Office,
the Chief of the Tokyo District Court, the President of the Bar Association; and the Governor of Tokyo areroutinely invited.
VPOs are also involved in planning and organizing the ceremony. For the Tokyo Probation Office, thevenue of the ceremony is held in a different location each year within the jurisdiction the Tokyo Probation
Office. The local VPOs’ Association that is selected to be the organizer of the ceremony prepares for theceremony in cooperation with the Probation Office.

VI. CHALLENGES AND SOLUTIONS
A. Challenges and Solutions to VPO Recruitment
1. Difficulty in Securing Information about VPO Candidates
The number of VPOs is gradually decreasing nationally. The capacity rate of VPOs in Tokyo (80%) islower than that of the national average (over 90%), which shows the serious downward trend in thenumber of VPOs in the Tokyo Probation Office’s jurisdiction.
The recruitment of VPOs is becoming more and more difficult in the Tokyo Area. One of the factors isthe development of large-scale collective housing caused by the over-concentration of population in Tokyo,
which increased the number of temporary residents in local communities. These societal changes
weakened the personal relationships in local communities, which caused difficulties in gaining information
about VPOs candidates.
Therefore, traditional measures of VPO recruitment, where the individual VPO recruited his successor
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from his neighbourhood, do not function well these days. To improve this situation, the Rehabilitation
Bureau institutionalized the “VPO Candidate Information Meeting”. This meeting consists of municipal
government officials, members of neighborhood associations, commissioned welfare volunteers and commissioned child-welfare workers, who are key persons with information on VPO candidates in the area. This
meeting was first introduced in April 2008 and was established in all the probation areas in April 2013.
B. The Aging of the VPO Population
Recently, the average age of VPOs is on the rise; the national average age of VPOs is over 64 years old,and Tokyo is in a similar situation. It is difficult to recruit the younger generation because they usually
have full time jobs, which may be incompatible with the duties of VPOs. In addition, specifically in theTokyo area, most of the residents live in small homes, such as flats or apartment houses, where it isdifficult to have sufficient room to comfortably interview probationers/parolees. It has also been pointed outthat many family members of VPOs do not prefer to receive offenders at their homes.
One of the measures to overcome these challenges is the establishment of Rehabilitation SupportCenters. Probation Offices and VPOs’ associations are making efforts to increase the number of Rehabilitation Support Centers so that VPOs can use these Centers as places to interview probationers/parolees. In
addition, the centers also serve as places for meetings of local VPOs’ associations, or as a secretariat officefor VPOs’ associations, and so on. By cooperating with local governments, Rehabilitation Support Centers
are often established in public buildings, where rent is not required.
The Tokyo Probation Office is making efforts to promote Rehabilitation Support Centers. Currently,
among 33 local VPOs’ associations within the jurisdiction of the Tokyo Probation Office, 16 local VPOs’ associations have set up their own Rehabilitation Support Centers, and more Centers are going to be built in
the near future.
C. Issues on VPO’s Training
One of the qualifications required of VPOs is that they have sufficient time available to accomplish theirnecessary duties. However, many VPOs have their own jobs or are involved in other volunteer activities.
Therefore, in terms of training, the decrease in the attendance rate at local area periodic training has been
an issue.
To increase the attendance rate, proposals to “hold training on the weekends” or “hold training in theevenings” had been made. However, it is very difficult to adjust the time and date so that all the VPOs in
the area can participate.
Therefore, the Tokyo Probation Office provides supplementary training sessions at the Probation Officefor the VPOs who could not attend the periodical training course at their own local area, so that more
VPOs can receive the necessary trainings.
In addition, after the local probation area periodic training courses or special training courses wereheld, the contents of the training will be included in Tokyo Probation Office’s monthly newsletter, so that
the VPOs can review what they have learned in the training, and even those who did not attend can gain
necessary knowledge by reading the article.

VII. SUMMARY AND CONCLUSIONSIn this paper, I outlined the situation of recruitment, capacity-building and public recognition (commendation) of VPOs, as well as its challenges. Lastly, I would like to conclude by pointing out the following
crucial points:1) VPOs are community volunteers by nature, but due to their significant responsibility ― toimplement community-based treatment of offenders, as a part of the criminal justice system ―VPOs are granted official status as part-time government officials. Hence, the recruitment process isvery strict with several selection stages, and their enthusiasm to rehabilitate offenders is highly
scrutinized. Moreover, the candidates are required to maintain strict confidentiality in thecommunity with respect to their rehabilitation activities.
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2) Because of the weakening of human relations and changes of housing situations brought about bymodernization and urbanization, recruitment of appropriate VPOs from local communities is
becoming increasingly difficult. However, the government is making sincere efforts to enhance theVPO system, which constitutes the front line of community-based treatment in Japanese society.
3) VPOs are community volunteers; however, their duty ― to help offenders rehabilitate ― is very
demanding. Therefore, the government considers it important to enhance ability and treatment
skills, and to enrich their knowledge. Hence, probation offices conduct various trainings andseminars for VPOs.
4) The contribution of VPOs to the society ― helping offenders rehabilitate in the community without
any rewards ― is outstanding. To repay to the VPOs for their priceless efforts and dedication, commendation is meaningful. Receiving commendations may motivate the VPOs to continue theirduties, enhance their quality of work and lift their morale.
As mentioned above, the Japanese VPO system is facing some challenges due to societal changes.
However, I believe that the importance of VPOs in the Japanese criminal justice system in the field ofoffender rehabilitation and crime prevention has not decreased at all. Therefore, it is crucial to further
promote the community-based offender treatment system conducted by the collaborative efforts of the government and community volunteers, which contributes to maintaining public order and safety of ourcountry.

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