Alternative sentences to deprivation of liberty are on the increase in Europe, according to the University of Lausanne in an annual report commissioned by the Council of Europe and published on Tuesday 8 June.
A survey entitled “SPACE II 2020”, based on figures from 29 probation services, shows that the number of offenders retained in the community has increased from 1,456,192 in 2019 to 1,500,547 in 2020 (+3%). These community sanctions include electronic monitoring, house arrest, treatment, semi-liberty or parole.
On 31 January 2020, per 100,000 inhabitants in Europe, there were 149 people on probation and 103 in prison.
The jurisdictions with the highest probation rates are Poland (643 persons per 100,000 inhabitants), Turkey (627), Lithuania (568) and Georgia (562).
The lowest probation rates are found in the two countries that started using community sanctions in the last decade: North Macedonia (six probationers per 100,000 inhabitants) and Serbia (35), followed by Switzerland (47), Norway (49), Finland (54) and Bulgaria (56). Link to the report: https://bit.ly/3w544mz
(Original version in French by Véronique Leblanc)