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While the UK and much of the world struggles with overcrowded prisons, the Netherlands has the opposite problem. It is actually short of people to lock up. In the past few years 19 prisons have closed down and more are slated for closure next year. How has this happened - and why do some people think it's a problem?
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"In the Dutch service we look at the individual," says Van der Spoel."If somebody has a drug problem we treat their addiction, if they are aggressive we provide anger management, if they have got money problems we give them debt counselling. So we try to remove whatever it was that caused the crime. The inmate himself or herself must be willing to change but our method has been very effective. Over the last 10 years, our work has improved more and more."
He adds that some persistent offenders - known in the trade as "revolving-door criminals" - are eventually given two-year sentences and tailor-made rehabilitation programmes. Fewer than 10% then return to prison after their release. In England and Wales, and in the United States, roughly half of those serving short sentences reoffend within two years, and the figure is often higher for young adults.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Monday November 14 2016, @11:31PM
Wow, that's BETTER food than jail! Breakfast is usually oatmeal, frozen apples, and water + "milk", lunch is really shitty fake bologna/salami/ham depending on the day + horrible koolaid mix (seriously the only ingredients are strange chemicals and food coloring, and it will stain concrete, I always save them and trade or gamble them), dinner is soy-based fake food with more koolaid. Peanut butter and jelly comes once a week, and I would save the peanut butter packs and trade other stuff for them because it's the most filling and nutritious food available. Second, haha, "cruel and unusual punishment". Coerced labor and starvation is definitely cruel. The way jail already works is that trustees (those prisoners who choose to work, or rather, don't refuse when they are assigned to work), have special priveleges (reduced time, some of them get paid or get discounts on commisary, some of them get access to outside and smuggle contraband) and there are WAITING lists, because there's not enough work to go around. If you wanted to put this into action you'd have to dramatically reduce the number of inmates or the increase the number of jails.
(Score: 2) by Runaway1956 on Tuesday November 15 2016, @01:31AM
Don't worry, the food offered will be marginally nutritious. I've heard horror stories about some kinda fake meatloaf crap - supposed to have all the vitamins and minerals, but even a starving man thinks twice about eating it. The thing is, you won't GET food if you won't work.
There will be work to do, I promise, for everyone. The floor may be gleaming, but you can always scrub it again. Think "boot camp". Pointless labor to fill the time. White glove inspections at any time. Even the bars on the cells will gleam. Everyone will be a trustee in my jail, because everyone will work. Police cars need to be washed, maybe two or three times a day.