Yellow Ribbon-Community Action for the Rehabilitation of Ex-offenders (“CARE”) Network Gala Dinner 2025 – Speech by Mr Edwin Tong, Minister for Law and Second Minister for Home Affairs

Good evening, everyone.

Associate Professor Faishal Ibrahim, Acting Minister-in-charge of Muslim Affairs and Senior Minister of State for Home Affairs,

Commissioner Yong Lee,

Phillip, Chairman of Yellow Ribbon Singapore,

Sunny, Chief Executive of YRSG,

Our many CARE Network Partners,

Many Distinguished Guests,

Introduction

1. A very good evening to all of you. Welcome to this evening’s CARE Network’s Silver Jubilee celebration . I think this occasion is an occasion to reflect on how far we have come, but also an opportunity to rededicate ourselves to what else we can build and how much further we can go.

2. Over the past 25 years, the CARE Network has brought together agencies across the entire correctional landscape to collaborate, to coordinate, share resources, exchange best practices, and also in that way, better support ex-offenders and their families.

3. From seven core members when the CARE Network was formed in the year 2000, it has today grown to 10 core members and over 170 passionate community partners, many of whom are here this evening with us.

4. Our two-year recidivism rate has declined from 40.1% in 2000 when the Network was formed, to 21.3% for the 2022 release cohort.

5. This is one of the lowest anywhere in the world, internationally, and this is an achievement that I believe is not a coincidence, but really can be made possible only by the collective efforts of the CARE Network, as well as the dedication of our staff, our partners, our volunteers, donors and the many sponsors.

6. Your generous support tonight will help us continue with this very important work, touch more lives, rebuild families, and overall, shape society, and we look forward to many more years of this partnership with you.

7. In particular, let me this evening acknowledge the invaluable contributions of the past Commissioners of Prisons, and the Chairmen and CEOs of YRSG, who are here with us this evening.

8. On this special occasion, let me invite all of you to stand up, each of you to stand up so that we all in this room acknowledge you, past Commissioners of Prisons, Chairmen and CEOs of YRSG.

9. Thank you very much to all of you for your many years of service, dedication and commitment to this cause. I believe that it is more than just about running prisons. It's more than just about programmes, but I believe that the work that you do shapes individuals, impacts families, rebuilds families, and shapes the kind of society that we live in, that we inherit, and that we pass on to future generations of Singaporeans.

Strengthening the Network

10. This evening, I am happy to share two new initiatives that will strengthen the CARE Network.

Yellow Ribbon Cares

11. First, three core CARE Network members – the Industrial and Services Co-operative Society Limited  or ISCOS, NeuGen Fund, and Yellow Ribbon Fund will be merged to form a new charity, “Yellow Ribbon Cares”, or in short, “YR Cares”.

12. YR Cares will be operationalised in the first half of 2026.

13. Individually, all three of these agencies have done tremendous work to support ex-offenders and their families.

14. Take for example, in 2024 alone, ISCOS programmes benefitted close to 1800 ex-offenders, giving them training and other support, getting them back on their feet. The NeuGen fund served more than 160 families and 560 children of ex-offenders; and the Yellow Ribbon Fund supported 4,095 beneficiaries through the funding of rehabilitative and aftercare programmes.

15. So we believe that this merger will bring together decades of experience across reintegration efforts, family support, as well as donor engagement, and this in turn will enhance programmes and services for ex-offenders and their families.

16. YR Cares will also expand engagements to cultivate stronger partnerships with employers, social enterprises and the many community organisations, all of whom we see as partners in this landscape for this very important work.

17. Funding for initiatives and services that support ex-offenders, their families, and children will be increased.

18. YR Cares is committing $5 million towards these programmes, up from about $4 million across ISCOS, NeuGen Fund and Yellow Ribbon Fund currently.

19. We hope that all donors and partners will extend your fullest support to YR Cares, so that collectively, we can do more to help ex-offenders and perhaps more importantly, their families as well.

Lim Tze Peng-Yellow Ribbon Fund STAR Bursary

20. Second, the CARE Network is launching the Lim Tze Peng-Yellow Ribbon Fund STAR Bursary. This recognises the immense contributions of the late Mr Lim Tze Peng.

21. Mr Lim was a cultural medallion, as many of you know. He happens to be one of my residents, and I've visited him at his home on many occasions. That man is a genius. His works, many of them masterpieces, great works of art, and Mr Lim had generously donated his artworks to help raise funds for the Yellow Ribbon Fund.

22. This STAR bursary, amounting to $140,000, is made possible through the auction of his artworks.

23. What does the bursary do? It will provide funding support for ex-offenders pursuing studies in fine arts, supporting them on their reintegration journey.

24. Let me thank Mr Lim and his family for their generosity and support for the Yellow Ribbon cause. This means very much to us.

Conclusion

25. This leads me to my last point before I let you get back to dinner, which is that this effort that we have, if you look around the room here, it's not just a many hands effort. It is many helping hands coming from different aspects of society, each lending a little bit to the landscape. The old saying has always been: “If you want to go far, you have to go together” -  and I think indeed, this evening you look around this room, we are going together. We are bringing people from different aspects of society or community - corporate, non-corporate, social, all coming together, lending that helping hand to ensure that ex-offenders and their families have the best possible support in rehabilitation and reintegration.

26. I am really very touched and very encouraged by the presence of so many of you here today. Gurmit said earlier, about 800 of you are here today.

27. Let us continue to come together, join hands to work together to support inmates, ex-offenders and their families so that we cannot just build a better future for them tomorrow, but that we can shape the Singapore and the society that we want to live in.

28. Thank you very much. Enjoy your dinner this evening.