Between the traditional punishment and the alternative punishment, the crossroads are formed that rebuild a person as a punishable entity, but as a spirit that deserves the opportunity. Justice is no longer a sword, but rather a new beginning, as the cruelty of condemnation was changed to the warmth of reform, from shortness of breath inside the prison, the bitterness of feeling, the slow time and the weight of the passage of time, awaits outside the walls as a punishment of another kind: the looks of society, the challenges of acceptance, and the path of return to life. His sons, as a husband, his family awaits his return, and as a human being in his hands a different beginning. There are suspended hearts in the house, and comrades realize that life is more valuable than being dispelled, and from reality there are the stories of those who went out to work in different professions, some of them have become a pioneer, but even an employee in the Ministry of Interior itself, so that the alternative punishment becomes a bridge to cross, not a wall to separate. This was documented by the movie “Thank you, Baba Hamad”, which embodied the joy of the children of the beneficiaries of alternative penalties. This reform philosophy was not just a theoretical discussion, but an experience that proved its success during the first international conference for alternative sanctions, which won the admiration of the attendees as the Ministry of Interior, led by the team, presented the first of His Excellency Sheikh Rashid bin Abdullah Al Khalifa, and its partners, a bright model for Bahrain in front of the world, in implementation of a reformist vision that leads it His Majesty King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa, the King of the Great Country, may God protect and preserve him. Alternative penalties have strengthened Bahrain’s position in international human rights forums, with a development vision that takes the human rights and human dimension as a priority. What was achieved was not only a legal amendment, but a qualitative shift in the philosophy of reform, where man has become at the heart of the equation, within the conviction that the perpetrator’s reform is the true entrance to the stability of society and ensuring its security. Prisons have turned from mere punitive institutions into reform environments in which values are sowed, and opportunities are available to start again. Alternative penalties are a pioneering national project, which has become a Bahraini pride, and a stretching bridge between error and right, punishment and reform, where the spirit of acceptance has replaced the harsh rulings, and the punishment has not mean the closure behind bars, but rather openness to the possibilities of real change. He granted a second opportunity that is the essence of a vision that Bahrain made, and was distinguished by it in this qualitative conference, which presented success experiences that the Ministry of Interior and its partners were unique, stressing that the punishment is not just a reaction to the crime, but rather a corridor to a new future. The aim was not only to evaluate the achievements, but also to anticipate the future by announcing the Center for Excellence for alternative penalties and open prisons, and launching the second opportunity award, to consolidate the concepts of reform justice, so that the prison turns from a place of punishment, into an incubator for psychological and social change, where justice is achieved, and mercy is translated into a tangible reality, especially when the perpetrator is a head of a family or a breadwinner for other individuals. Whoever contributes to turning punishment from a tool for deterring into a way to refinement, to generate hope from the uterus of pain, and to write a new beginning as it was thought to be an end.
