Japanese elders turn to extreme sheltered housing option
First posted at 23:54GMT on 03/04/08 by Amelia Sanders
According to a recent report by the Ministry of Justice, more and more elderly Japanese are turning to crime out of poverty and isolation, suggesting a breakdown in traditional family and community ties. With nowhere else to go, more elderly inmates serve out their full sentences, instead of being released on parole like younger prisoners. What is more, recidivism is higher among them.
“There are some elderly who are afraid of going back into society”, said Takashi Hayashi, Onomichi’s vice director. “If they stay in prison, everything’s taken care of. There are examples of elderly who’ve left prison, used up what money they had, then were arrested after shoplifting at a convenience store. They’d made up their minds to go back to prison.”
Read the full article in the International Herald Tribune