PRISON SYSTEM OF THE KINGDOM OF SWEDEN: STAGES OF FORMATION AND MODERN STATE

Abstract

In Sweden the formation of the prison system began in the middle of the 19th century. As a result of the reform there were 3 penitentiary establishments for men and 1 for women; 46 solitary confinement prisons; 3 central prisons for the forced labour for men, 1 for women and 1 for young vagrants and juvenile offenders. The Philadelphia solitary confinement system was introduced in Sweden. It gave the possibility to achieve the high level discipline. It was formally canceled only in 1945. In 1864 the Criminal Code of Sweden was adopted. It established the penal sys-tem and the relevant establishments for enforcement of sentences related to im-prisonment. The Social-Democratic Government began the next stage of the reforms. The Minister of Justice of Sweden Karl Schlyter advocated the restriction of using the imprisonment. He supported the differentiation of the penal establishments, in par-ticular the creation of the special juvenile institutions for minors. The main task of the prison administration was to accustom the convicts to work and keep the order. The moral and educational influence should encourage the offenders to make the socially useful work, which gave them the possibility to return to the law-abiding life and secured their life after the release. The innovative views of the reformers were standardized in the Prison Regulations (1938) and The Protective Code (1945). In 1962 the new Criminal Code of Sweden was adopted. It came into force in 1965 and laid the foundation for the modern penitentiary model. The special atten-tion was paid to the «labour programme», which became the «calling card» of the Criminal-Executive System of Sweden at that time. At present the enforcement of sentences, in particular the alternative measures, is entrusted to the Prison and Probation Service of the Ministry of Justice of Sweden. 36 regional departments are subordinated to it. Penal establishments, pre-trial institutions and probation bodies are under their jurisdiction.