Deradicalization of Prisoners in the Scandinavian Countries as a Milestone Phenomenon of Circular Economy

Abstract

This paper is concerned with the issue of preventing and countering the proliferation of radical ideologies in the penal system. The development and implementation of program activities aimed at counteracting the proliferation of radical ideologies among prisoners become particularly relevant in this day and age. Special emphasis on this topic is made by the fact that many methodological, organizational and legal aspects of countering the extremization of places of detention both in Russia and abroad are understudied and require further study. Goal: analysis of special aspects of penal prevention of violent forms of extremism and radicalization of prisoners based on the systematization of experience of the Scandinavian countries. The principal approaches to the study of this issue are analysis and comparison as the main methods, system structural and specific sociological methods for the purposes of studying the state of social relations and the effectiveness of the law-enforcement activity in the area of deradicalization of prisoners. Results: authors used the example of the Scandinavian countries (Sweden, Denmark, Norway, Finland and Iceland) to reveal the content and features of work with prisoners who develop radical beliefs, persons convicted of extremism-related crimes, penal prevention of violent forms of extremism and radicalization of prisoners. The analysis of deradicalization strategies of the Scandinavian countries suggests that there are no comprehensive country-wide national deradicalization programs for prisoners in these countries. Despite the good practices of influencing prisoners, measures taken by the governments of abovementioned countries are not comprehensive; they are aimed at working with individual groups of prisoners or single prisoners. Based on the analysis, the author concludes that it is possible to use the successful practices of these countries in the development and adoption of deradicalization measures relating to the domestic penal system. The authors of this paper, for the first time ever, used a set of scientific methods to analyze measures aimed at deradicalization of prisoners in the Scandinavian countries. Practical relevance: fundamental principles and findings of the paper can be used in scientific and academic activities when considering conceptual issues of countering extremism. Information in this paper can be of practical importance for the elaboration of measures of deradicalization of persons sentenced to imprisonment relating to the domestic penal system.