“I want to make the most of my time, even in prison, and this training should help me find a job later,” said Denny, 31, who has just over two years left of a five-year prison sentence. “Of course, I knew how to make a coffee before, but here I am learning about different flavours, smells and aromas, and about the artistic side of coffee making.” Denny is one of 200 inmates in the Tangerang Class IIA Correctional Facility and among more than 35,000 inmates across Indonesia who are involved in vocational training, from eco-printing on textiles to farming. While learning how to be a barista behind bars, he said he hopes to get a job in a café following his release. Salis Farida Fitriani, who heads the correctional facility, said the programme aims at building a better future, but skills training alone is not enough for inmates to succeed in the outside world. To deal with a society that often stigmatizes them for life, she said, the prison offers training in personality development, counselling, and religious teaching.
