The Advisory Committee positions rehabilitation as "a significant part of the final stage of the criminal justice system under which offenses and delinquency are exposed and punishment and protective measures are imposed." The Committee also emphasizes the meaning and significance of the reform of the rehabilitation system, deeming it as "the final touches on a series of reform of the criminal justice system including the Saiban-in system and Prison Administration Reform."
  Based on the recommendations by the Advisory Committee, the Ministry of Justice has been working to (1) clarify responsibilities of probation officers and develop and implement treatment methods effective for preventing repeat offenses, (2) clearly divide roles of probation officers and volunteer probation officers and prompt probation officers to concentrate on dealing with inmates difficult to treat who require authoritative measures, (3) review the current services and system of rehabilitation and build a new system where probation officers can devote themselves to on-site probationary business as experts, and (4) promote the plan for the Center for Promotion of Self-Support Rehabilitations (tentative name) to provide enhanced job assistance and establish a system for a Center that can provide especially enhanced treatment to promote rehabilitation and prevention of repeat offenses.
  As efforts for effective probationary treatment, primary urine tests came to be implemented for parolees for stimulants-related offenses in April 2004 (see Part 3, Chapter 3, Section 3, 4), and sex offender treatment programs started in FY2006 (see Chapter 4, Section 4, 2 of this Part).
  With regard to persons who dropped out from probationary supervision and disappeared and are highly likely to repeat offenses, their whereabouts started to be investigated in December 2005 by asking for cooperation from the police. Up to May 31, 2006, whereabouts of 153 parolees and 117 offenders given suspension of execution of sentence with probationary supervision were made clear thanks to reports from the police. As a result, the number of missing probationers/parolees decreased to 1,292 persons, a decrease of by 250 persons from the same day of the previous year (457 parolees whose probationary supervision was suspended (down by 173 persons from the previous year) and 835 offenders given suspension of execution of sentence with probationary supervision (down by 77 persons from the previous year)).
  The Ministry of Justice and the Ministry of Health, Labour, and Welfare compiled the "Comprehensive Job Assistance Measures for Released Inmates, etc." and are going to start the following measures from FY2006 as completing preparations: (1) the fidelity guaranty system for encouraging cooperative employers to hire released inmates; (2) trial recruitment system for promoting employment; and (3) internship and workplace excursion programs for helping serving inmates and released inmates acquire knowledge and techniques for employment.