Psychosocial Reintegration of Ex-prisoners

Restoration Burundi has held two sessions with ex-prisoners on psychosocial reintegration, aiming to help them heal from trauma and prevent recidivism. These sessions are part of its justice program, which includes sensitizing communities on the law through local radio stations, and offering legal, psychological, humanitarian, and spiritual support to prisoners and ex-prisoners.

Restoration Burundi has been pleading for people wrongly imprisoned, and this intervention has led to the release of hundreds of prisoners incarcerated in various prisons across Burundi. Only since April 2025, 250 cases were handled while 50 people were released. However, their psychosocial reintegration remains a complex and delicate journey that requires coordinated and sustained support. Many prisoners return home after years behind bars with their lives shattered. Some are traumatized by what they endured in prison; others are shaken by the damage caused in their families during their absence. Some face the risk of falling back into the same behaviors that once led them to prison. With no preparation for reintegration and communities often unforgiving, rebuilding a normal life becomes extremely difficult.

“Since I came back from jail, my friends have been ignoring me. When I walk through my neighborhood, people talk behind my back. It feels like I am an abomination,” said Ninette*, one of the ex-prisoners who attended the workshop.”

Healing trauma was one of the central points of focus. Some participants were wrongly imprisoned or endured harsh experiences, and they now carry deep emotional scars.

Ange* recalls how she was arrested at 4 AM from her bed, just two weeks after her C-section. She bitterly recounted:

“I will never forget that horrible dawn. My heart has remained bruised because the arrest came out of nowhere, and I had no conflict with anyone. I had suffered an accident while pregnant, and doctors had to perform an emergency C-section because they believed my baby had died. Thankfully, my child came out alive. Two weeks later, at 4 AM, I was lying in bed with my baby. I had nothing to accuse myself of. I heard someone knocking; when we opened, policemen asked for our household notebook. After giving it to them, they told me to get ready because they wanted to take me. I was terrified. I tried to understand what wrong I had done, but they said nothing and simply told me to get dressed.

My husband explained that I had fresh C-section scars and that I had been in an accident; I could not even lift my baby. They refused to listen, and my husband carried the child since I could not. We spent the whole day without being told what I was accused of, and I was eventually taken to the central prison, where I stayed for 2 years and 3 months with my baby, only to be released without ever appearing before a court. After all that time, I was told I was accused of selling a shared land plot without the co-owner’s agreement. It was just a pretext to put me in jail. I never shared land with anyone, and no one ever came forward to accuse me. The person who sent me to prison and never showed up had practically buried me alive. This deeply wounded my heart.”

Ange’s story reflects the painful experiences of many others who carry emotional wounds from what they lived through, as well as the damage created within their families by their absence. The workshop became a safe space for participants to open up and release their pain. Restobu organized personal sessions where psychologists listened to participants one by one, helping them begin their healing journey.

Ann* was imprisoned due to what she described as a conspiracy by her husband, with whom she had a troubled relationship. Through tears, she expressed:

“When I remember what happened, the conspiracy that was built around me, it still hurts my heart. Speaking openly like this helps me feel better. But we need more time with psychologists to help us heal.”

The sessions also included a symbolic moment called “burning the burdens,” where participants wrote down their sorrows on pieces of paper, which were later collected and burned as a sign of releasing pain. Many testified to feeling their minds lighten as the symbolic flames rose.

Fighting recidivism was another focus of these workshops, which were led by professional psychologists. When ex-prisoners return to their communities, they face criticism, rejection, and social isolation. Some end up returning to the very behaviors that led to their incarceration.

“I was jailed in 2021. In 2022, I was released, and the same behavior sent me back to prison in 2023, until I was released again in 2025. I will never repeat it. We learned what caused this: bad companions. I am going to change them. I thank you for the training. It has helped me a lot. I hope I will never go back there,” said Karim*.

These teachings also helped Eric, who was on the verge of reacting violently to someone who had hurt him, an action that could have sent him back to prison.

“The person who caused me to go to jail unjustly often scoffs at me when we meet. It hurts me deeply. I was ready to attack them someday and face whatever would follow. But now, after this training, I leave this place having already forgiven them,” Eric* said.

Participants were also encouraged to focus on development initiatives instead of remaining trapped in their past. The workshop helped them redirect their thoughts and envision new paths.

“I was jailed for selling prohibited alcohol called “umudiringi”. Even after prison, I kept selling it. What else could I do? I am raising four kids alone; they must eat. Of course, this training has changed my mind. They taught us to look for other ways. I leave here deciding to sell tomatoes and grains instead and abandon the drinks that kept sending me into trouble. I hope I will find life again through this new activity,” Anitha said.

Psychosocial reintegration is a long-term process. These ex-prisoners need support to reintegrate into society, launch income-generating projects, and reconnect with their churches and communities. It is in this context that Restoration Burundi has also held sensitization sessions to church leaders to get involved in the lives of prisoners and ex-prisoners. Restobu called on the church leaders to provide humanitarian, spiritual, and emotional support. The organization has also prepared a training module to train selected pastors to guide them on how to accompany ex-prisoners throughout their reintegration journey.

“The Bible says: ‘Then the King will say to those on his right, come you who are blessed… for I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you visited me.’ Please, church leaders, stand up and fulfill this verse,” said Gratien Nibigira as he read Matthew 25:31–46, calling on churches to take action on behalf of prisoners.

Restoration Burundi continues to advocate for those wrongly imprisoned including those acquitted by courts but not released, those granted provisional release that was never implemented, those held for long periods without appearing before a court, and those who completed their sentences but remain in prison while offering lawyers to those unable to afford them.

On several occasions, Restobu has provided vehicles to help transport judges to remote prisons in an effort to reduce the long delays that keep prisoners unheard. When it comes to ex-prisoners, Restobu plans to strengthen psychosocial and economic support to ensure full reintegration, including financing small development projects so that ex-prisoners can rediscover hope and the meaning of life.