Sir, - As reported in the Irish Times (June 6th), the Irish penal system is under considerable stress. The prison chaplains have apparently produced another highly critical report on the conditions being suffered by prisoners. According to the above article, the chaplains have also called for a Department of Justice review of the Criminon programme, one of the most successful inmate rehabilitation programmes in the world, which has recently been set up in Ireland. Criminon Ireland is in agreement with this request.
The Criminon programme is in use in over 700 prisons across the globe with the active support of Judges, Probation Officers and other penal system professionals. At any given time there are over 2,500 people on the programme. Recently a study was carried out to test the efficacy of this programme under the auspices of Judge Patrick Murphy of Covina, California. Of the 67 individuals who participated in the programme over a year, only one person reverted to crime. This is a recidivism rate of less than 1.5 per cent! Compare that with the recidivism rate of up to 80 per cent in the penal system at large.
The Criminon organisation is secular and uses the research discoveries of humanitarian L. Ron Hubbard. It is supported by Scientologists and nonScientologists alike and is very effective in rehabilitating criminals, restoring their self-respect, improving their literacy levels and addressing their drug problems. Ireland needs this programme and Criminon Ireland welcomes any Department of Justice interest in it. -Yours, etc., Katrin Ruckert, Executive Director, Criminon Ireland,
P.O. Box 5552, Dublin 1.