The government's latest report on crime once again highlights the need for measures to help elderly former convicts reintegrate themselves into society by providing them with jobs, welfare services and other support. The higher chances of repeat offenses by those 65 or older — when the average rate of recidivism among former convicts continues to decline — testify to the difficulties that many of them face in finding work or a place to live upon their release. The national government needs to work with municipalities, private-sector organizations and local communities to explore what can be done to support these former convicts, many of whom with few or no relatives they can turn for help, to prevent them from engaging in more criminal offenses.
According to this year's White Paper on Crime, the number of people 65 and older sent to prison is on the rise — reaching 2,498 in 2016, over four times more than in 1997 — whereas the overall number of people jailed annually has been declining after peaking in 2006, falling to a postwar low of 20,467 last year.
The recidivism rate is also picking up among the ranks of the elderly and is higher than among former convicts in other age groups. Of the 2,498 seniors sent to prison last year, more than 70 percent were jailed for at least a second time, with 922 imprisoned for the sixth time or more.