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Mrs Tarisai Mchuchu-Ratshidi
Under the leadership of Ms Tarisai Mchuchu-Ratshidi, the international organisation, Young In Prison (YIP) has grown from strength to strength in Cape Town helping young people move away from lives of crime and become successful and contributing members of society.
The main aim of Ms Mchuchu-Ratshidi’s work is to empower young people to make the right choices and stop living a life of crime. Young In Prison has a huge drive to help young offenders turn towards a fulfilling life for themselves, their families, their communities and in turn for the country itself. The focus is on opportunities for these young people to be successfully rehabilitated and reintegrated.
Since Ms Mchuchu-Ratshidi took the reigns at Young in Prison in 2008 she has done a lot of work on advocacy to make changes to the juvenile justice system. She believes it very important to change the mind-set of the community at large to shift thinking from punitive towards restorative justice.
In her opinion prisons are universities of crime for children and young people. It should only be used as a last resort for those who are a danger to themselves or others. She is working hard to get the community to think deeper about why a child steals. Her belief is that it is because he or she has not been taught any better as people are not born evil, it is circumstances that drive them to commit evil deeds.
Ms Mchuchu-Ratshidi is also driving to get more support for post-release participants. These young people cannot leave prisons and then be idle on the streets again. She is campaigning to get South African businesses to buy into employing ex-offenders and offering training to inmates of all ages inside prison.
Young in Prison is an International Foundation with five independent organisations, and Young in Prison South Africa has its offices and project in Cape Town. Following the success of the work the organisation is doing in Pollsmoor Prison, Ms Mchuchu-Ratshidi is aiming to reach other communities and work in many more prisons in South Africa.
She firmly believes that youth at risk - such as those in prison - need alternatives to crime. If they have opportunities before they commit crime their lives will be very different.
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