Is this the world’s most comfortable prison? Inmates at Bastoy enjoy sunbathing and fishing trips
52 replies, posted
[URL=http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/832/ay104730236.jpg/][IMG]http://img832.imageshack.us/img832/7540/ay104730236.jpg[/IMG][/URL]
A prison where inmates can enjoy sunbathing and trips to the beach has been dubbed the most comfortable in the world.
[url]http://metro.co.uk/2013/02/26/is-this-the-worlds-most-comfortable-prison-inmates-at-bastoy-enjoy-sunbathing-and-fishing-trips-3515094/[/url]
[video=youtube;I6V_QiOa2Jo]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I6V_QiOa2Jo[/video]
It's worth noting that Bastoy [url=http://www.reddit.com/r/worldnews/comments/196pe7/norwegian_prison_where_inmates_are_treated_like/]has one of the lowest reoffending rates in the world[/url]
People like to flip their shit at the fact that the prisoners get these luxuries, but I suggest reading the top comment in the link I posted. They also still have their freedom taken away.
Also its worth noting that Norway is a very rich country with good infrastructure and living standards, it would be understandable for people to be annoyed that prisoners in their own country had better living standards than a large percentage of the populace, but it isnt really the case here.
why not i suppose
welcome to norway
It's almost like treating people like humans and offering them the support they need to improve their own lives actually has a positive affect on inmates.
Who would have thought?
I wouldn't call it a prison, I would call it a criminal rehab facility.
[QUOTE=NoDachi;39722336]It's almost like treating people like humans and offering them the support they need to improve their own lives actually has a positive affect on inmates.
Who would have thought?[/QUOTE]
Yup, this is the comment from above if anyone is too lazy to click the link:
[quote]I've worked in a high security Norwegian prison. I am currently preparing a thesis on the effect of the educational system in Norwegian prisons. It's acclaimed all over that it's a good thing - it gives them equipment to move away from the criminal environment they are in, and it also has a great mental hygienic effect. I just wanted to put a few of my experiences in here because people are always offended that prisoners have so many rights. [B]"I could just murder someone and play playstation and get an education for free!"... Yeeeeah, it's not all as rosy-red as it looks like.[/B]
I had the privelige to work in civillian clothes which was extremely helpful in getting another perspective - they rarely meet people in civillian clothing, and it helps to gain trust quickly. The only types of criminals I didn't work with were sex offenders which is basically because I am a young female and it was believed that that would be a security problem for me.
I taught different subjects on different levels - from analphabetism to tutoring university subjects. School is a privilege in the sense that you have to prove yourself to be motivated and to function good enough socially. The result is that the inmates I worked with, though they had committed serious crimes, were pleasant and motivated. We worked hard and laughed a lot. Occasionally we'd say fuck it and play some games to relax, but most of them time we worked hard with the subjects and they generally got good grades - average and upwards. I did everything from prep people for final exams, to see a grown man cry because he was finally able to write a letter. The first letter he wrote was to me, a thank you note where he told me that now that he could read and write, his life would never be the same again. I will frame it some day.
A lot of them were drawn to school just to not be in their cell, but a lot of them also wanted to learn a vocation, and to get a vocational certificate you have to have a certain amount of academic subjects. They are the most motivated people I will ever have had. There is a lot of personal growth, and most importantly they learn to take pride in skills that are not criminal.
There was little sunbathing in that prison, but it's an overall goal to rehabilitate prisoners so that they can serve the last bit of the sentence in more open prisons where they can work away from the prison. The security measures are still strict, but a lot of prisoners struggle with going from a life where every aspect is highly regulated to none at all and the transitional period is very beneficial.
It sounds very frivolous for them to have play stations, but they are confined for so many hours of the day that it's actually offered to keep them busy, keep the from focusing on the depression that most of them go through during their sentence. I know that after a week or two with super limited contact I'd probably gnaw off my own arm from frustration if I didn't have any distractions.
It's also a common misconception that they have internet just because they have computers. They are working on finding a way for them to have internet which still hinders them from communicating with the outside world. So far they haven't been successful. Whenever we had a project where they should use the internet we had to sit by their side and monitor them. There wasn't much redditing, to put it lightly! It's mostly for school work, and also to learn computer skills.
It all sounds very happy and perfect and the inmate system works very well, as the paper shows. There are two reasons for prison punishment, where one is to guard them from society and the other is rehabilitation. The latter is the most common. Every prison is basically a self-run unit with schools, health care, priests etc. within the prison itself. It's a very unique place. The prisoners have the same rights as people on the outside, as it should be. I've spent too much time watching their mood swings, their troubles, and their frustrations to think anything else. But there is this misconception that they are on an eternal holiday. The punishment lies in that they have no freedom. It's severe. Everything is regulated. And I mean everything. They have a few hours every day to cook together, hang out, watch TV, etc., and I believe that that offers a sense of normality and community that is extremely important. I just don't think people see just how severe the limitations are, and that that is the real punishment. I loved working there, and I also hated how emotionally draining it could be at times.
You can see clearly from the cells the general level of mental health. In the ones that have long sentences but a certain level of freedom and community, the cells are decorated. A few drawings from their children, family photos, personal belongings. And in the cells with the most severe limitations, where the inmates are only supposed to be a short time (as the goal is to get them all to the level where they share a community with others), it's just filled with tags from previous inhabitants, "fuck everything", "i want to die", "kill me". I have very high beliefs in the Norwegian system, especially the way that the prisoners move upwards in rights - the better the behavior and motivation, the more freedom they gain, and as a result, they are better equipped when they finish their sentences.[/quote]
It seems people would rather have criminals thrown into a shithole where they will likely die or leave and go straight back in for committing more crimes, than actually be reformed into an educated person that doesn't need to resort to criminal activities for money.
Man...was. sad when my mom got a dui for a seizure week in jail ofcourse way different than prisons...but still they had a gun to her and slammed her on the ground course they said sorry we didnt know now and dropped charge..
[QUOTE=Cushie;39722348]It seems people would rather have criminals thrown into a shithole where they will likely die or leave and go straight back in for committing more crimes, than actually be reformed into an educated person that doesn't need to resort to criminal activities for money.[/QUOTE]
It's part eye-for-eye mentality, partly that criminal is a loose definition. At base, when someone says criminal, most people might jump to the idea of a grubby looking gangster who just attempted to rob a store and maybe shot some people along the way.
Yet, criminal can tie to someone who lied on some paperwork or had some small amount of a drug; all the way up to manslaughter and rape. And this whole thing would get lambasted if a single person of moderate 'criminal-ness' came out as a repeat offender.
Not that I'm against it, I think reform and problem-solving is a far better solution than "let them rot and eat exorbitant amounts of tax money for their many year/life stays." I just don't think the American populace will ever, unfortunately, get behind the idea of fixing criminals instead of punishing them.
Hobbies: Assault, battery, burglary and long walks on the beach
[quote] to see a grown man cry because he was finally able to write a letter. The first letter he wrote was to me, a thank you note where he told me that now that he could read and write, his life would never be the same again. I will frame it some day.[/quote]
This still happens in first world countries?
I can probably see some people doing some stuff just to get into this place because it's much better than what they have now, or just for a vacation.
When I've seen a prison like this on the TV, someone who was working on that prison said that the real punishment is living without freedom for what you did. Not being able to get outside is enough as a punishment.
[QUOTE=Sir Whoopsalot;39722619]This still happens in first world countries?[/QUOTE]
It does. A small amount of people can't write or read, even in first world countries, but they're there.
People get the wrong idea about this prison and think they sunbath 24/7 and skip around in rose fields. They still have their freedom taken away.
This would be hard to do in the US preciesly because it'd be really expensive to maintain for our current prision population. Prision is already a massive moneypit in the US, and its going to be even worse with something like this.
Which is exactly why we need to stop imprisioning people for stupid reasons, keep ACTUAL threats to society/etc in prision, and then maybe we could afford to rehabilitate the people who need it. Also would help to not have prisions privately ran in the US.
In other words this will never happen.
To be honest this is probably for mild crimes, I doubt you'll be seeing murderers and rapists in these conditions.
[QUOTE=carcarcargo;39722824]To be honest this is probably for mild crimes, I doubt you'll be seeing murderers and rapists in these conditions.[/QUOTE]
Not sure about rapists, but murderers stay in this prison, yes.
I think OP should have linked to this instead: [url]http://www.guardian.co.uk/society/2013/feb/25/norwegian-prison-inmates-treated-like-people[/url]
[QUOTE=Doom14;39722521]I just don't think the American populace will ever, unfortunately, get behind the idea of fixing criminals instead of punishing them.[/QUOTE]
I agree, but I think the issue is also living conditions like this are better than a large amount of people in the US, so people would naturally be against criminals being given better living conditions than a law abiding person for committing a crime. It isnt as much of a problem in Norway because its a wealthy country with good living standards.
If any other country was going to try this then it would probably have to be limited at first, and alongside normal prisons, and people who make an effort in the prison and show that they actually want to reform can get transferred out to one of these facilities, and on the flipside people who obviously just pretended so they could get better living conditions and not do any work could be transferred back to prisons to serve their sentence out normally.
Also the media does not help with the portrayal of these prisons to the people. They talk about it like it it some sort of holiday home for criminals where they get to sit and play on the Playstation all day and get all kinds of luxuries. Also the fact that even when they do mention that its extremely effective like in this article, people read the title and start seeing red, not bothering to read the rest.
[QUOTE=garychencool;39722650]I can probably see some people doing some stuff just to get into this place because it's much better than what they have now, or just for a vacation.[/QUOTE]
yup being locked in a facility with criminals and having your freedom restricted for a time you have no control over is a fucking vacation.
[QUOTE=KorJax;39722815]This would be hard to do in the US preciesly because it'd be really expensive to maintain for our current prision population. Prision is already a massive moneypit in the US, and its going to be even worse with something like this.
Which is exactly why we need to stop imprisioning people for stupid reasons, keep ACTUAL threats to society/etc in prision, and then maybe we could afford to rehabilitate the people who need it. Also would help to not have prisions privately ran in the US.
In other words this will never happen.[/QUOTE]
The entire prison system in America is completely flawed and needs a drastic overhaul.
Who would have thought?
[editline]26th February 2013[/editline]
[QUOTE=carcarcargo;39722824]To be honest this is probably for mild crimes, I doubt you'll be seeing murderers and rapists in these conditions.[/QUOTE]
It for serious crimes as well.
[QUOTE=carcarcargo;39722824]To be honest this is probably for mild crimes, I doubt you'll be seeing murderers and rapists in these conditions.[/QUOTE]Nope we put most people like that there too. Notice how I said people like that and not criminals.
I mean, god forbid we have a criminal system that doesn't just make people worse.
It's strange because the inmates are given luxuries and freedom to walk around without fear, yet watching that video it seems like they all hate it so much.
I don't see the problem with this. They're human too - their punishment is to be secluded from society, not everything in existence. We should be encouraging them to live their lives and want to reintegrate into society as a better person, not fester and rot in a cell all day all the while building up hatred for the people who put them there.
thug life
I believe I read an article including how the prison guards asked the inmates to call them and assure them that they're in good condition if they were to flee.
I also read that some of those who fled the prison returned after a few days.
[QUOTE=Petrussen;39723824]I believe I read an article including how the prison guards asked the inmates to call them and assure them that they're in good condition if they were to flee.
I also read that some of those who fled the prison returned after a few days.[/QUOTE]
I suppose if you flee, you have no food or shelter plus you're most likely wanted anyway.
I go to med school in aruba and the prison here seems pretty comfortable. Prisoners get satellite tv and can easily get a phone like a blackberry and use programs like bbm etc. Seems like its just rehab or something haha
The only problem I see here is foreign people going there to break the law so they get a better life.
[QUOTE=tr00per7;39724266]The only problem I see here is foreign people going there to break the law so they get a better life.[/QUOTE]
I doubt that immigrants in norway have such terrible lives.
Sorry, you need to Log In to post a reply to this thread.