Press Release

Yan Chai MY Rehabilitation Foundation provides financial assistance to inmates

     The Correctional Services Department (CSD) today (July 14) held a launch ceremony at its Shek Pik Prison for the Yan Chai MY Rehabilitation Foundation.

     The foundation has been established by the Yan Chai Hospital's Board of Directors to provide financial assistance to inmates' own children who are under 18 years old to help overcome their immediate financial difficulties.

     Speaking at the launch ceremony, the Chief Secretary for Administration, Mr Henry Tang, said, "The CSD provides a secure, safe, humane, decent and healthy environment for people in custody. It also helps inmates to rehabilitate and re-integrate into society through its rehabilitation services. In recent years, we have worked hard to promote and encourage community engagement. This is to let the public understand and identify the need to help with offender rehabilitation and enhance co-operation between non-government organisations and the public. 

     "The Yan Chai MY Rehabilitation Foundation is the result of much meditation by the CSD and one of its partners, the Yan Chai Hospital."

     The Chairman of the Yan Chai Hospital Board, Mr Edmond Lee, said the foundation's objective is to provide financial assistance to inmates' own children who are under 18 years old and help them to relieve their immediate financial burden upon the inmates' admission to correctional institutions.

     The Commissioner of Correctional Services, Mr Sin Yat-kin, said inmates had to adapt to prison life and worry about their family members' financial situation when they were sentenced, and that it would be a barrier to their rehabilitation. The Yan Chai MY Rehabilitation Foundation solves the financial problems of inmates' own children and in this way helps inmates to turn over a new leaf.    

     As some of the inmates are the breadwinners of their family, family members may face financial difficulties upon an inmate's admission to correctional institutions at the beginning. The foundation will consider applications from inmates within three months of their date of sentencing to solve the urgent financial problems of their own children who are under 18 years old (and must be holders of a Hong Kong identity card). The foundation is totally managed and vetted by the Yan Chai Hospital. Family members of inmates may still apply for other subsidy schemes provided by other organisations for their financial difficulties.

     Other guests at the ceremony included the Chairman of the Yan Chai MY Rehabilitation Foundation Committee, Mr Raymond Leung; the Chairman of the Yan Chai MY Rehabilitation Foundation Vetting Committee, Mr Edwin Cheng; and the Chairman of the Advisory Board of the Yan Chai Hospital, Mrs Tang Yew Zoe-chi.

Ends/Thursday, July 14, 2011
Issued at HKT 18:16

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Guests officiating at the Yan Chai MY Rehabilitation Foundation launch ceremony today (July 14) include the Chief Secretary for Administration, Mr Henry Tang (third left); the Commissioner of Correctional Services, Mr Sin Yat-kin (second left); the Chairman of the Yan Chai Hospital Board, Mr Edmond Lee (fourth right); and the Chairman of the Advisory Board of the Yan Chai Hospital, Mrs Tang Yew Zoe-chi (third right).