More than
240 prisoners from overcrowded prisons in Norway will be moved to the
Netherlands and take over what local media have called ‘luxury’ cells
 |
| A member of prison staff stands outside a cell at Norgerhaven prison in Veenhuizen, The Netherlands. Dutch prisoners who currently enjoy countryside views and can cook their own food are suing the government over a deal for Norwegian convicts to take over their cells. Photograph: Catrinus Van Der Veen/AFP/Getty Images |
Dutch
prisoners who currently enjoy countryside views and can cook their own food are
suing the government over a deal for Norwegian convicts to take over their
“luxury” cells.
The
agreement, signed by Dutch deputy justice minister Fred Teeven on Monday, is
aimed at alleviating waiting times for convicted criminals in Norway, where
prisons are almost filled to capacity.
Relatives
of the Norwegian inmates are also angry at the multi-million euro deal for 242
of them to be transferred to another country hundreds of kilometres away.
Inmates at
the Norgerhaven prison near Assen in the northern Netherlands would have to
forfeit the privileges of long-term prisoners if they are transferred.
They can
currently grow vegetables, keep chickens, cook their own food, gaze at the
scenic Dutch countryside and have a generous daily exercise regime. Dutch media
have labelled them “luxury” cells.
The
prisoners also have their own “hobby space”, can choose what colour to paint a
wall of their cells and have private 55-channel television, Dutch media
reported.
Now, at
least 17 long-term prisoners, serving sentences of between 10 years to life for
crimes including murder, have taken the Dutch justice ministry to court, their
lawyer Hettie Cremers told AFP.
“They do
not want to be moved from one place to the other,” said Cremers, who expects a
Dutch court to rule on the matter on Friday.
Of
particular importance is the prison’s countryside view, which “can make a huge
difference between keeping or cutting off a small connection with the outside
world, especially when serving a life sentence,” Cremers said.
In Norway,
prisoners and the wardens’ union are also opposed to the move.
“We’re very
sceptical about the agreement because it violates several fundamental
principles, primarily family proximity to the prisoner during detention,” said
Hanne Hamsund, who heads an organisation representing Norwegian prisoners’
families.
“The
agreement undermines families’ ability and capacity to maintain regular contact
with the prisoner,” she said, although the deal should exclude prisoners with
children.
Norwegian
authorities have pointed out that the distance from Oslo to the north of the
country is greater than to the Netherlands.
“Not
everyone lives in Oslo,” said Hamsund.
“So when a
family member is detained in the Netherlands, you have to go to Oslo, then get
a plane to Amsterdam then take a three-hour bus journey.
“This
represents a considerable cost and forces loved ones to leave work for a few
days just to make a prison visit.”
Dutch
justice ministry spokesman Jaap Oosterveer told AFP the €25m ($28 million) deal
would pay the wages of around 240 prison officials.
The
Netherlands has predicted that around 700 of its prison cells will become
vacant over the next five years and has housed 550 Belgian convicts in southern
city Tilburg since February 2010.
The
Netherlands-Norway deal still needs to be approved by both countries’
parliaments and hopes to see the first Norwegian convicts move in on 1
September.
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