Baristas behind bars: Thai prisoners brew a path back to daily life

But Cook & Coff, which is located in Khao Khuen Lan, a town in eastern Thailand, is no ordinary coffee shop.

Open to the public, it is managed by Thailand’s Department of Corrections and run on a day-to-day basis by prisoners.

Tup* is 26 years old and is the man preparing today’s brew. He spent six months in a maximum-security prison in Khlong Phai, in northeastern Thailand, before being transferred to Khao Khuean Lan, a more open facility, where he learnt to be a coffee barista.

Every day after his shift serving customers finishes at 3pm, he returns to prison. Gradually he is relearning how to once again become accustomed to the outside world.

In 20 days, Tup is due to be released. He looks forward to seeing his mother. If she can help him, he’ll invest in a coffee machine and start his own business.

Reintegration

The stigma that incarcerated people carry in Thailand often makes reintegration back into society challenging.

To relieve this burden, Thailand is attempting to reduce reoffending through rehabilitation rather than punishment.

The Kyoto Model Strategies, adopted by UN Member States in December 2025, provide a comprehensive framework for the process.

They emphasise that breaking the cycle of crime requires addressing root causes, poverty, lack of education and social exclusion, and not just imprisoning offenders.

Social shortcomings

“The real problem lies in society,” said Thitiphan Manuchantrarut, director of the Khao Prik Agricultural and Industrial Correctional Institution in Sikhio, northeastern Thailand.

“Lack of money leads offenders to drug trafficking. If they learned the skills we teach them here in prison at an early age, in the real world, they would probably not have turned to drug trafficking in the first place. They would probably not have ended up in prison.”

Reoffending is also a challenge. “Most prisoners go back to their context,” Manuchantrarut added. “If, instead of going back home, they are given the opportunity to work elsewhere, to change their initial circumstances, they will be less likely to recommit the offence.”

UN assist

Skills training in prison offers prisoners who are willing to reform a second chance. The UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) works with Thai authorities to support programmes which ensure that changes extend beyond policy papers.

UNODC also works with the Thai authorities to improve prison management and conditions.

In the facility where Tup spent his early twenties, prisoners – the majority of whom were poor – used to have to pay for drinking water.

UNODC installed a water purification system that turns water from the nearby lake into potable water.

Beyond installing water systems, UNODC’s role in Thailand includes connecting prison directors with community resources and helping develop the frameworks that make reintegration possible.

The Nelson Mandela Rules

The improvements are guided by the Nelson Mandela Rules, the universally acknowledged blueprint for prison management in the 21st century.

Named after the former South African President Mandela, the global icon of resistance to Apartheid – who spent much of his life incarcerated and who the UN remembers annually on 18 July – the Rules outline minimum prison conditions, provide guidance and set clear benchmarks for prison staff on how to uphold safety, security and human dignity.

They focus on taking better care of prisoners by establishing mandatory training for prison officers and promotions based on their performance.

“You will never waste a penny if you invest in the Nelson Mandela rules,” said Sukanya Thainoy, a former training academy director.

“It’s basic support for officers. With well-trained officers, treatment of prisoners improves, then prisoners look up to them, respect their professionalism. This is what creates a safe space for prisoner and officer.”

Thailand’s prison system accommodates 310,000 people. Across the country’s 143 correctional facilities, prison managers are implementing a mindset change, guided by international frameworks like the Nelson Mandela Rules and the newly adopted Kyoto Model Strategies on Reducing Reoffending.

“If prison officers are smiling, prisoners will be smiling, then society will smile,” said Permpol Thiendusit president of the Songkhla Central Prison in Southern Thailand. “Prisoners know. They can feel if their rights are being respected or not.”

*The name has been changed to protect the interviewees’ identity