When looking at previous history it is seen that 19 prisons closed in the Netherlands in 2013 as there were not enough criminals to fill them.This steady drop in crime has been since 2004, and so another five more prisons are about to close.
Imagine, prisoners had to be imported from Norway to keep prison facilities occupied. Therefore the country now has a solution, instead of importing prisoners; they will be abolishing the whole prison system.
How has the Netherlands succeeded in this huge feat –
- Relaxed Drug Laws – Psychologically people always want to do the opposite. With plenty of drugs available, people avoid using as many drugs, and if they do they know their limits.
- Rehabilitation – The country focuses on rehabilitating people who are criminals, druggies or pure menaces to society. The Netherlands believes that punishment is not the answer.
- Electronic Ankle Monitoring- People who have been felons before are able to get back into the country’s working economy by wearing a traceable electronic ankle.
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The Netherlands as a whole has a population of 17 million people with only 11,600 people being locked up. That is 69 people per 100,000 people.
Looking at the worst countries in terms of population-
- United States – 724 per 100,000 People. It is at over capacity at the moment with 107.6% occupancy.
- Russia – 615 per 100,000 People. It is getting to the point of no return, with increasing the crime rate.
- Brazil – 113 per 100,000 People. It may not have as many inmates, but it does not have sufficient prisons either. It is running at an occupancy level of 150.9%.
India has an incarceration rate of 33 per 100,000 People. The worst affected prisons in India are Uttar Pradesh and Bihar with over 850,000 under trials between them. Around India, the case of undertrials is what fills the prisons. This is due to the slow court cases and the whole legal system.
A state like Bihar comparatively to a country like the United States is doing terrible in terms of criminals in the Prison. There needs to be a focus in terms of solving the crime issue in Bihar, by taking a closer look at Netherland’s policies.
