Home Page | Rotary Club of Singapore

Are you an established professional who wants to make positive changes in your community and the world? Our club members are dedicated people who share a passion for community service and friendship. Becoming a Rotarian connects you with a diverse group who share your drive to give back.

Rise Against Hunger - Rice Distribution

Rotary Club of Singapore collaborated with ‘Rise Against Hunger’ to distribute rice and dal to workers in the dormitories. As the rice was Ponni rice it is more suitable for South Asian cooking. The distribution of the rice was coordinated with a dormitory volunteer group ‘Its Raining and Raincoats (IRR)’ by Rtn. Mukundan and Rtn. Srihari. The distribution was done through IRR volunteers as they had the entry permit to South Asian Workers dormitory due to covid restrictions. The project comes under the aegis of the Community Service Committee CSC, Rotary Club of Singapore and a big thank you to PP Lip Kee for making this happen.

ISCOS 2.4 - Bruce Mathieu - Acquiring Skills and Don’t be discouraged

Many ex-offenders do not have much education. Coupled with a prison record, job opportunities are hard to come by. This creates a vicious cycle. Without a job, they become stressed. When stressed, they resort to drugs to relieve themselves of the stress. When they run out of money to buy drugs, they resort to crime. Providing ex-offenders with skills that enable them to secure a stable income helps to break this vicious cycle.

ISCOS has identified vocational driving as a skill attainable by most ex-offenders except for the relative high cost of attaining a driver’s licence in Singapore. Research has showed that Class 3 driving licence can bring about a 50% increase in salary compared with jobs such as a cleaner (one of the few jobs that are open to ex-offenders with limited education).

As such, the Rotary Club of Singapore is supporting ISCOS in their Skills Assistance Subsidy Scheme, to subsidise the cost of attaining a driving licence for ex-offenders.

ISCOS 2.3 - Bruce Mathieu - Difficulties in Reintegration

“During an offender’s jail term, the punitive element of imprisonment should not overshadow its reformative aspect.” – Chief Justice Chan Sek Keong, 2006

Singapore has a zero tolerance towards drugs. Drug trafficking carries a mandatory death sentence and drug abuse is a criminal offence that carries a jail sentence. Repeat drug offenders are subject to long prison sentences. In Singapore’s low crime environment, drug related offences account for 4646 out of a total of 6934 inmate population (2020 Singapore Prison Service Report).

Researchers Justin Lee and Fern Yu in a commentary published on Channel New Asia succinctly highlighted the issues with reintegration. They noted that the Singapore criminal justice system has taken the lead in showing willingness to ”forgive and forget”. There is a provision in place for those who were convicted of less serious crimes to have their criminal record spent if they stayed crime free for five years. Organisations like Community Action for the Rehabilitation of Ex-offenders (CARE) Network, and the Singapore Corporation of Rehabilitative Enterprises (SCORE) are set up to coordinate efforts of various organisations and to oversee employment and skills training respectively.

Research showed that predictors of reintegration includes the ex-offender making a personal choice to reintegrate, his age, having a vision and purpose in life, staying committed to change, having spirituality, having basic needs met, family support, access to employment, etc. While some of these factors are personal decisions that the individual has to make, some are structural factors that institutions and voluntary welfare organisations can contribute towards.

ISCOS 2.2 - Bruce Mathieu - Finding God & Public Renunciation

There are many theories on why people abuse drugs. Most centred around emotional stress, coupled with the lack of alternative solutions and access to drugs. In Bruce’s case, a troubled childhood lacking in guidance and supervision led him into a gang which introduced him to drug abuse. The sensation given by illicit drugs such as marijuana provided an escape from the negative emotions that has built up over the years.

Bruce is fortunate to have a daughter whom he loves dearly and that gave him to strength to turn over a new leaf. He also found endurance through religion. Believing in a higher being provides a sense of hope for the future and the sustenance to stay on the right path.

Leaving the gang is the first step towards recovery. A public renunciation of gang membership severs or reduces the access to drugs. It is a signal both to the gang member/drug abuser as well as to the gang that the relationship is over.

Beyond spiritual and moral support, a means of making a living is crucial. Being able to support oneself and one’s family financially provides a sense of self worth and responsibility. Like many ex-offenders, Bruce did not have a lot of formal education. Developing vocational skills that can make a decent livelihood goes a long way towards keep recidivism low.

Again, Bruce was fortunate to encounter a social enterprise that not only provided him with training to become a barista but also provided him with a job. The Living Well Café is located in Tan Tock Seng Hospital and seeks to help disadvantaged and marginalized people to sustain themselves.

ISCOS 2.1 - Bruce Mathieu - Begining to Turn over a New Leaf

Bruce Mathieu, 51 years old, sentenced to 20+ years in prison on multiple occasions, received 21 strokes of the cane. Bruce speaks about how he ended up the way he did and how he turned himself around
The Singapore Prison Service reported 2539 drug-related admissions in 2019, a steady increase over the 2018 (2248 cases) and 2017 (1962 cases). Out of the 2,539 cases, 2080 were placed in Drug Rehabilitation Centre while 991 were in long-term imprisonment.
According to an SPS report in 2020:
The DRC regime consists of the In-care Phase and the Community-Based Programme (CBP) Phase. During the In-care Phase, abusers go through psychology-based correctional programmes, skills training, as well as family support and religious services, in order to prepare them for reintegration into society after their release. These help abusers deal with the psychological and emotional aspects of their drug abuse, as well as equip them with the knowledge and skills to prevent relapse. Aftercare supervision during the CBP Phase provides abusers with supportive measures that facilitate their reintegration into society.
Superintendent of Prisons (SUPT 1A) Loh Hong Wai, Superintendent of the DRC in Institution B5, said, “At the DRC, by understanding the factors that led abusers to use drugs, we are able to tailor our rehabilitation regime accordingly. This helps us to provide structured and evidence-based interventions that are more effective in preventing further drug abuse. Even after their release, we continue to provide support to ease their transition back into the community, giving them a better chance of staying drug-free in the long run.”