30 June 2008

Inmates to exhibit good behaviour to get out early
As of Tuesday, prisoners in the Netherlands will no longer have their sentences automatically reduced by a third. It has long been standard procedure to release all inmates sentenced to more than six months after they have served two-thirds of their sentence.

De Telegraaf writes that the new legislation ends the practice of “giving criminals a gift of a third of their sentence. Now they must demonstrate good behaviour in prison. What’s more, they must serve the remainder of their sentence if they again break the law.”

De Volkskrant writes that the legislation was introduced following the trial of Volkert van der Graaf, who was sentenced to 18 years in jail for killing the politician Pim Fortuyn in 2002.

Many people were angry about the fact that he would automatically be released after 12 years. The new legislation assures that each prisoner’s release will be judged on a case-by-case basis, according to his or her behaviour.

“The prisoner now has a trial period which is the same as the remainder of the sentence. If the prisoner commits a crime during this period he or she must serve the remainder.” The prisoner can also be asked to meet certain conditions, such as agreeing to behavioural therapy, having to report to the police station or keeping out of certain neighbourhoods.

De Volkskrant also quotes a number of specialists in criminal law who warn of pitfalls. “The prisoner is at the mercy of the goodwill of the prison director…prison directors and wardens will have a lot of power. It’s frightening.”
 
Race riots shock Curacao
Dutch people studying or working on the Caribbean island of Curacao, in the Dutch Antilles, were attacked last week because they were white. The Dutch Antilles are self-governing territories of the Kingdom of the Netherlands.

 1 2 Next >