In the minimum security prison in the Abai region, the convict is preparing to start a new life.

A 34-year-old resident of Pavlodar was convicted of theft. First, she stole a mobile phone while visiting her friend, and then she stole women's underwear and a tracksuit in one of the city's shopping malls.
The court sentenced her to three years and six months of imprisonment with 100 hours of forced labor per year.
Being under the supervision of the probation service, she repeatedly violated the established procedure and evaded the duties assigned by the court. As a result, the part of the sentence not served was commuted to imprisonment for a period of two years.
She was sent to a women's colony to continue serving her sentence. During her stay in the women's colony, the convict changed her attitude to life: she worked diligently, followed the established procedure, for which she was transferred to the Semey minimum security institution, where she continued to serve the remaining term of one year and two months.
At the minimum security facility, she met a 39-year-old convict who was also serving a sentence. Communication gradually developed into a serious relationship. After his release, the man did not stop communicating. Despite the fact that today he lives in Pavlodar, he regularly comes to Semey on dates. Recently, he made a marriage proposal to his beloved.
- When I found myself in prison, I rethought a lot. The hardest part was breaking up with my underage children. It was here that I met a man who supported me when I least expected it. He believed in me, and that faith helped me change. After his release, I thought our relationship would end, but it turned out the other way around — he proposed to me. I will be released very soon. I have children, a loved one, and a new life waiting for me. I am sure that the past will be left behind, and the new stage will be based on family, responsibility and a law-abiding lifestyle," the convict shared.
- We work daily to ensure that convicts do not just serve their sentences, but get the opportunity to change their lives. For this purpose, employment, training, psychological assistance, educational work and social adaptation programs are organized. When a person sincerely strives to improve, begins to appreciate his family, make plans for the future and returns to a law—abiding life, this is the main result of our work," said Dauren Bugilbayev, head of the department of educational and socio-psychological work among the convicts of the institution.