BARBADOS SEEKS ASSISTANCE WITH ITS

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 BRIDGETOWN 001339 SIPDIS SIPDIS SENSITIVE E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: SOCI ELAB PHUM BB XL SUBJECT: BARBADOS SEEKS ASSISTANCE WITH ITS REINTEGRATION PROGRAMS Ref: STATE 144021 ¶1. (u) This is an action request, see para 10. ¶2. (sbu) Summary: In a wide-ranging courtesy call with the Ambassador October 17, Barbados? Minister for Social Transformation said he was leading an effort to establish a domestic program for reintegrating paroled prisoners into Barbadian society and invited the USG to provide any appropriate assistance. Supporting such a home-grown effort could provide an excellent opportunity to leverage scarce USG resources while at the same time rewarding a regional partner for burden-sharing. End summary. ¶3. (sbu) The Ambassador?s October 17 courtesy call on Barbados Social Transformation Minister Trevor Prescod covered a wide array of topics, from prisoner rehabilitation to housing codes to care options for the severely disabled. Prescod, whose ministry cross-cuts with a number of others including Health, Internal (Home) Affairs, and Education, is trying to corral an array of disparate programs under one roof and connect them to a single theme of poverty alleviation. ¶4. (sbu) Within that framework, Prescod discussed with the Ambassador the most pressing concerns for the ministry to date ? rehabilitation of parolees and care for the severely disabled. He noted a recent decision by the government to institute a pilot program to parole lower-risk inmates as part of a new prison reform plan that also included the opening of a new central prison. He said this decision, whatever its other impacts, would put a number of parolees on the street without adequate skills to re-integrate. ¶5. (sbu) To address this concern, he said his ministry is committed to reversing the stigma against hiring people with criminal records. He noted that the government ? employing 40% of the country ? is prohibited from hiring anyone with a criminal record, and that there is a disinclination in the private sector to hire former inmates as well. Moreover, as potential employees must provide a ?certificate of character? as part of the hiring process, people with criminal records are automatically disadvantaged when applying for jobs. Prescod said his ministry is researching the legal bases for this employment discrimination with an eye to overturning it through recommendations to the Attorney General. ¶6. (sbu) Moreover, Prescod said his ministry is working on a plan to provide counseling and vocational training to parolees to ease their transition back into productive society. He said the ministry is also looking into setting up ?halfway houses? for parolees to ease back into society, as they often enter strained family situations upon their release. He noted that returnees from the U.S. would likely benefit from the program as well, welcomed the recently announced IOM pilot projects, and encouraged further collaboration between Barbados and the USG along these lines to provide similar support for Barbadian returnees. He also asked if the USG could provide educational materials, in the form of DVD?s or similar media, to help the ministry deal with thorny rehabilitation and reintegration issues. ¶7. (sbu) Regarding care for the disabled, Prescod noted the variety of facilities around Barbados dedicated to caring for people with varying levels of disability and illness, and said his ministry is dedicated to improving the quality of care and the quality of life both for those with disabilities and those who care for them. He noted the ministry is in the process of establishing a respite care system to assist those caring for severely disabled family members. ¶8. (sbu) Barbados? greatest need at present, BRIDGETOWN 00001339 002 OF 002 he added is for trained specialists in specialized fields dedicated to long-term care. He singled out the lack of trained and qualified prosthetics specialists and physiotherapists as particularly critical needs, and said he would welcome any assistance the USG could provide to assist in training Barbadians to fill these niche specialties. ¶9. (sbu) Comment: Prescod did not hold this meeting with his hand out. In fact, we were surprised to learn that Barbados is taking strong initiative to establish its own reintegration and rehabilitation program for parolees (and, as needed, returnees from the U.S.). USG support for such a program would reward Barbados for taking responsibility for its returnees and could encourage others in the region to do the same. It might also be a way to stretch USG assistance money by plugging into existing programs vice creating programs from whole cloth. ¶10. (sbu) Action Requests: Understanding the significant efforts that have gone into launching the IOM program (reftel),we would welcome Washington?s views on the possibility of supporting Barbados? home-grown initiative. Meanwhile, we would also welcome any educational material Washington could provide or procure to advise this program. Finally, we welcome Washington input regarding possible training opportunities in medical specialist programs, whether through the State Partnership Program or another mechanism. OURISMAN