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Ministry of Justice and the Police
Dept. of Corrections
Norway’s “Reintegration Guarantee”
Gerhard Ploeg, senior adviser
Barcelona, DOMICE-seminar 29.9.2011
Norway: some relevant characteristics
Bizarre geography:N–S: 2,500 kmE–W: between 700 and 6 km
Low population density:
• 4,9 million - 14 per km2
• In 430 municipalitiesHigh income:• per capita GDP $
57,500• 2 % unemployed
Welfare-based:• Roughly 1 million
publicly employed (= ca. 30 %)
3
Sanctions
Organisation
Central level
Six regional offices
50 prisons and 17 probation main offices
Oslo: 392 Mosjøen: 12 Average: ca. 70
Staff training
Prison officers: two-year education for• Social sciences and law• Ethics and human rights• Post-training coursesSalary during education
Probation workers: academic level
Extensive discretionary powers
White Paper on Corrections
”Punishment that works”
(September 2008)
Outline for penal policy fora period of 5 – 10 years
Principle of normality = no stricter than necessary
The punishment is the deprivation of liberty
Security: enough is enough
A life as normal as possible
Import model
Medical, educational, employment, clerical and library services are provided from outside
• Continuity
• Involvement
• Budget
• Addiction
• Low education
• Unemployment
• Homeless
• Below povertyline
Inmate’s living conditions
60 %
40 %
80 %
65 %
40 %
Source: FAFO, 2004
Reintegration guarantee
• A place to live • Some form of
income• Identity papers
If relevant an offer of:• Education• Employment• Health services• Addiction treatment• Debt counsellingThe whole government!
”Guarantee”
• Political guarantee• No new legal rights• Exercising the rights of every citizen• It requires the co-operation of the
offender
Four myths around the guarantee
No!
The Government owns it
Myth #1
The Ministry of Justice “owns”
the Reintegration Guarantee
No!
The Municipalities own the offenders
coming from a community –
going to a community
Myth #2
The Correctional Services “own” the offenders
No!
All you need isCoordination
Attention GoodwillMoney
Myth #3
“The Others” are to blame!
No!
The guarantee applies to all forms of sentence -
Probation role is central
Myth #4
The Probation service has no role in the reintegration guarantee
Key Figure
The Reintegration Coordinator
(25 ultimate case managers)
• What type of competence?• Which location?• What about current
functions?- Social consultants?- Contact officers?- Job centre-supervisors?- Work operation staff?
• For offenders• For correctional services• For case-managers• For service providers• For social network
Predictability
Source: ”Retur”, Nordic Research Group, 2010
• All prisoners released and all community sentences started in 2005
• Follow-up period of two years• Recidivism = new conviction to prison
or community sentence
Recidivism
Denmark Finland Norway Sweden0
5
10
15
20
25
30
35
40
45
Releasees Probation clients Total
%
The right direction??
www.kriminalomsorgen.nowww.cepprobation.orgwww.euro-vista.org
tel. +47 99 246 276
Thank you for your attention!
Follow me on Twitter: @gerhardploeg
