Prison opens for foreign convicts

Justice Ministry authorities opened a newly redesigned prison in Kongsvinger last week that will house foreign male prisoners due to be deported after serving their jail terms.  The Vardåsen Prison in Kongsvinger can accommodate 97 men, 49 of whom need to be held in high-security custody. The goal is to use the prison strictly for [...]

Convicted terrorist unhappy in prison

The young Norwegian terrorist who killed 77 persons in twin attacks last year has written a 27-page complaint about his prison conditions. Anders Behring Breivik has access to three separate cells, but claims the high-security measures to which he’s subjected will drive him to suicide. Newspaper Dagsavisen opted on Thursday to report on Breivik’s complaint, [...]

Foreign convicts face separate jails

Some opposition parties in Parliament want to place foreigners convicted of crimes in prisons that are much more spartan than those housing Norwegians. They argue that there’s not such a pressing need for rehabilitation, since the foreign convicts face deportation after serving their terms. “We don’t need to offer these (convicts) education or other help [...]

Prisons ‘often’ break isolation laws

Norwegian prisons have admitted that they “often” hold prisoners in solitary confinement without permission from the courts. Prisons have been required to seek court approval for such arrangements since 2002, when the Council of Europe’s Committee for the Prevention of Torture and Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (CPT) criticized the widespread use of solitary [...]

New effort to expel foreign convicts

Justice Minister Knut Storberget is making another effort to send foreigners convicted of crimes in Norway back to their home countries, to serve their prison terms in local jails. The number of foreign convicts in Norwegian prisons has risen rapidly in recent years, putting even more pressure on prison capacity. Around 30 percent of convicts [...]