{"id":4892,"date":"2016-11-17T08:00:11","date_gmt":"2016-11-17T13:00:11","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/thediplomaticenvoy.com\/?p=4892"},"modified":"2021-01-22T18:06:37","modified_gmt":"2021-01-22T23:06:37","slug":"focus-prison-conditions-in-norway","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.shu.edu\/thediplomaticenvoy\/2016\/11\/17\/focus-prison-conditions-in-norway\/","title":{"rendered":"Focus on Prison Conditions: Norway"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><strong>By Daniel D&#8217;Amico<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Prison conditions in Norway are relatively humane, and the same can be said for various Scandinavian countries. Many are known for their low number of prisoners and comfortable conditions in which they live. In particular, Norway has one of the world\u2019s most humane prisons. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Norway boasts very low prisoner rates compared to other countries. For instance, <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/commentisfree\/2008\/oct\/18\/prisonsandprobation-norway\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Scotland has over 7,000 inmates in 16 jails while Norway has just over 3,500 prisoners held in 50 prisons.<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"> The countries have comparable population sizes. Those in Norway accredit these low rates to the way in which their prisons are run. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">At the Bastoy Prison in Bastoy Island south of Oslo, prisoners have the opportunity to engage in various recreational activities such as fishing and tennis. The <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/commentisfree\/2008\/oct\/18\/prisonsandprobation-norway\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Guardian<\/span><\/a> <span style=\"font-weight: 400\">reported<\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">, <\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">\u201cMichael Moore, the American film director, had wanted to feature the prison in one of his documentaries, but thought that absolutely no one would believe that he was really filming in a jail.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Halden Prison is said to be one of the most humane prisons in the world. It capitalizes on comfort, and the rooms are decorated like those of a typical home to prepare prisoners for outside life. Also, they have kitchens to cook in and free time to play games. The officers\u2019 role there is very crucial to the improvement of prisoners as well. According to <\/span><a href=\"http:\/\/content.time.com\/time\/photogallery\/0,29307,1989083_2137378,00.html\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Time<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"> Magazine, \u201ctheir official job description says they must motivate the inmate \u2018so that his sentence is as meaningful, enlightening and rehabilitating as possible,\u2019 so they frequently eat meals and play sports with prisoners.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">The crucial difference in prisons in Norway compared to most other countries is that prisoners in Norway are treated like citizens. This gives them the opportunity to enjoy luxuries while at the same time living separately from others. They know that they did something wrong and go to jail, but they are prepared for their release in such a way that they are unlikely to repeat their offences. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Prisons are also not a political issue in Norway, and it is part of the reason that they have been able to gather such widespread support. Their low prison rates, according to Professor Thomas Mathiesen, a leading voice on European prison reform, \u201creflect a \u2018moderate social system\u2019 in Norway.\u201d This results in a lesser socioeconomic divide between citizens in the country.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">While the method in which they deal with their prisoners may seem good, it cannot work in places such as the United States. This is due largely to the differing economic system. In an article from the <\/span><a href=\"http:\/\/www.cheatsheet.com\/business\/3-reasons-why-norways-prison-system-should-not-be-replicated-in-america.html\/?a=viewall\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Cheatsheet<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">, \u201cany government action [\u2026] will be subject to the vigorous push and pull of this debate.\u201d Without public support, a prison reform this large could not happen. It is also impossible because of the relationship between inequality and crime that exists in the U.S. Additionally, it is mostly immigrants who make up the population of jails in Norway. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Prison systems and prisoner treatment in Norway yields positive results as recidivism rates are very low in Norway among other Scandinavian countries. The social and economic conditions in Norway make this kind of treatment possible whereas it is not possible in other countries.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Prison systems and prisoner treatment in Norway yields positive results as recidivism rates are very low in Norway among other Scandinavian countries.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3107,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"colormag_page_container_layout":"default_layout","colormag_page_sidebar_layout":"default_layout","_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[940,5,1096,1407],"tags":[526,894,941,943,946],"class_list":["post-4892","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-november-2016","category-focus","category-1096","category-prison-conditions","tag-europe","tag-focus","tag-november2016","tag-focus-prisons","tag-norway"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.4 - 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