A report on a jail
in Norway, where inmates are encouraged to walk around outside
unguarded and enjoy the fresh air has made the rounds. Murderers and
pedophiles are treated to private rooms, TVs and showers and get
their meals served on quality dinner plates. Many would consider this
highly offensive, but Norwegians have defended this approach to
rehabilitation of convicted persons. It may seem revolutionary to
some, backwards to others and a unlikely prospect for America, but
the next round of reporting on Norway's way of treating prisoners
will be about Breivik, the mass murderer who set off bombs in Oslo
and shot up an island, killing seventy seven victims, mostly
children.
Norway likely will
never let this guy mingle with other prisoners out of fear he will
take hostages to trade for freedom. He is the only person in Norway
held in maximum security at this time. He is isolated from the
population and this will be so for an indefinite time. It
sounds like the right thing to do. He did some horrible acts and is a
clear and present danger to those around him. Keep him isolated, he
deserves it. Norway is so serious about that, they are even hiring
professional friends for him.
No,
you did not misunderstand the last line in the paragraph above. This
caused a little anger to flash across my mind when I read about these
friends, who will play sports, chess and talk with them every day.
This however fits in with Norway's commitment to human rights. He
will never have normal contact in the general population and Norway
cannot isolate him from humanity forever according to the principles
Norway subscribes to. So Norway will enlist the help of Red Cross and
hire a few people to be his professional friends.
”Many precautions taken with Breivik are taken to prevent hostage
taking, which would be the only way for him to pass through the many
security layers that stand between him and freedom. This makes it
impossible to establish normal contact with others.” said Knut
Bjarkeid, director for Ila, a prison close to Oslo.
The trial for Breivik is set to run over ten weeks and is currently
in its fifth week. Criminal trials in Norway normally take place in
district courts before a professional judge and two lay judges
appointed by local government. Appeals from this court are heard
before a panel of five judges, where two are professional and it is
first in the appeals court will a jury hear a case. Ciminal
sentences last no longer than six years, but commitment to mental
institutions can be indefinite.
No comments:
Post a Comment