Yellow Ribbon: True-Life Accounts of Ex-Offenders and Their Second Chance at Life
Shawn Wee & Looi Wan Teng
Singapore: Marshall Cavendish Editions, 2011
ISBN: 9789814328739

Drug abuse, peddling, smuggling, and even murder: what happens after those convicted of these crimes are released? They have done the time and paid the price, but can they really change?

Upon release, many ex-offenders struggle with the stigma of having done time. They are released from prison or drug rehabilitation centres, only to find themselves imprisoned by something far more intimidating than steel bars, barbed wires and towering walls - prejudice. Viewed with suspicion, they face difficulties in securing jobs and reconciling with their loved ones. But all they need is a chance to prove themselves.

Yellow Ribbon is a book that chronicles the lives of eleven ex-offenders in Singapore who have managed to break free of the "second prison". Through their own determination, the support of those around them, and initiatives like the Yellow Ribbon Project, they have managed to overcome the odds and secure for themselves, and their families, a better, brighter future.