Prisons and Prisoners in Europe 2019: Key Findings of the SPACE I Report
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Prisons and Prisoners in Europe 2019: Key Findings of the SPACE I report Marcelo F. Aebi and Mélanie M. Tiago 1. Introduction This document summarises the main findings of the 2019 Council of Europe Annual Penal Statistics on Prison Populations, better known under the acronym SPACE I. The rates and percentages presented here correspond to the European median values and are presented in the text in round numbers unless they are lower than 10; in particular, the rates are calculated on the basis of data weighted by the population of each country (see Methodology for further details). The detailed state-level data are presented in Tables 3 and 4 at the end of the document. Forty-five (45) of the 52 prison administrations in the 47 Council of Europe member states answered the SPACE I 2019 questionnaire, which corresponds to a participation rate of 87%. The following prison administrations did not answer the questionnaire: Belgium, Bosnia & Herzegovina (State level, Federal level, and Republika Srpska), Georgia, Malta, and Ukraine. However, data concerning the total number of inmates in Belgium, Republika Srpska (Bosnia & Herzegovina), Georgia, Malta, and Ukraine, as well as the total capacity of prison institutions in Belgium, Republika Srpska (Bosnia & Herzegovina), Georgia, and Malta were retrieved from other sources (see comments to Tables 3 and 16 of the SPACE I 2019 for further details) and are therefore included in the calculation of the relevant European median values. 2. Stock indicators: Prisons and Prisoners on 31st January 2019 On 31st January 2019, there were 1,540,484 inmates in the penal institutions of the Council of Europe member states for which data are available. This corresponds to a European prison population rate of 106 inmates per 100,000 inhabitants. Map 1. Prison population rates (number of inmates per 100,000 inhabitants) on 31st January 2019 (N=50) 24 February 2020 450 1 . 6 400 8 3 0 . 350 9 2 3 ) s t n a 7 t . i 300 9 b 6 1. Figure Northern and (UK). Iceland Netherlands, Ireland the Germany, 100,000 inhabitants) are distributed across the Scandinavian countries, a few countries of the Azerbaijan Lithuania, Balkan and the Czech Republic; while region, the lowest Federation, Turkey and Georgia, followed (with rates of more than 200 inmates highest perprison population 100,000 inhabitants) by Fi while Europe, across inhabitants) 100,000 per moreinmates or 250 to inmates 80 less than (from categories six in rates visualises prisonpopulation 1 Map a 2 h n 1 i . 2 0 2 3 . 0 250 8 2 0 , 1 6 . 0 2 0 . 2 1 9 0 7 . 0 5 5 4 . 0 9 1 1 8 2 . Prison population rates (inmatesrates per1 Prisonpopulation 4 5 1 3 9 8 r 1 5 8 8 8 1 . 1 e 8 1 200 1 9 1 p 1 1 . 6 ( 6 1 0 e . 5 t 9 6 . 1 a 4 7 7 r . 2 7 7 9 1 . 3 8 n 5 5 5 5 150 1 2 2 2 2 2 1 o 5 2 . 6 7 1 i . 6 1 . 5 1 1 1 1 . 2 . t . 0 7 8 6 6 5 6 4 a 3 1 6 0 0 0 . 0 0 l . 0 0 0 9 0 1 1 1 . 9 1 1 u 9 1 1 1 1 4 9 9 p 5 2 3 . 2 . 9 9 . 7 . 4 o . 2 5 1 1 . 100 9 8 9 p 6 . 6 8 4 1 8 8 7 . 3 7 7 6 7 8 7 . n . 6 7 7 4 . 8 6 . 0 9 6 6 o 8 rates . 6 4 6 s 5 9 5 i 3 . 5 r 4 0 3 . P 4 50 1 3 ( i.e. 9 . 2 0 more than 250 inmates per 100,000 inhabitants) are found in the Russian ) l ) ) o s a a a y a s e y a e a a a s ) y a c a c n n e d o n o d d n y a k d d a g e a a d a a y d l i i n i i i l i i i i a f i i i i i i c d r m c c t r a n e r e a k r u a g r l v l e n n n n t n n r l i n a n n a o n a r g l o e n r n r e n i n i a n v n j n g i i a s a u n u t o g o a a a a n d a a a t t b b k t a a i a a n a t a i r t r w o e o a u i a l e l l e l l p e I a s d a r l c g o l a n a p o o d r s e o g t t a u u a a l r g r o r t i t o a e v m d m e r d r e b l n r e y l u l M l e l n n o u r o r b r T a W l u n i r m m s L p p b e c o r r r e k o e w S o n n e G F u v o r C a ( r b u e P h M e I e C I I A o o e e r T e F l e z m c E A M S e c m t t d t t G t N U a a A t B B u e i h S A P S H M d a R a n s R R n n G i e n n h t D n i i z k p L e n : r x C a c i a a o k h gure 1 shows the detailed distribution distribution detailed the shows 1 gure M e a n l w a e A F ( K S e e u i c e a S p e i N b d R M h h p L U v e n n S t p m ( L u t i n z a o o r r o d a i p a a l r C l i o o r s e S p A u g s 00,000 inhabitants)31 00,000 on b u N N S R E e n r u E : : t E e R K a H S : t U B S K ( U n i a p S prison populat st January 201 January ions of of ( i.e. these 9 less than 80 inmates per (N=50) rates by country by rates . The. 2 2. Figure Turkey). am highest prison population rate. In fact, the other extreme of the distribution, Russia has the lowest percentage of inmates aged also amid these 50 5 countries, or but has over, a high but prison population the rate and a v time is the prison population rate and the a When one compares this indicator with the ones presented in Table 1 below, it can be seen, for example, that 1 of the country in presence of h relatively a The2. Figure in presented is which prisonpopulations, European of ageing the of indicator this on data provided are inmates the of (15%) percent Fifteen years to 39 31 varies from where the median age of T Age penal institutions ininmates held Characteristics European the of 2 of age he median ), the prison population rate (Figure 1), or the percentage of inmates sentenced for drug offences (Figure ong the ones with the highest prison population rate (for example, Moldova, Montenegro, Lithuania and of the population prison among among the Percentage of Percentage of 40% other indicators presented in this study, such as the % 2 . 5 the 5 % 3 countries countries 3 . 3 35% 3 inmates heldinmates European in penal institutions inmates aged 50 or over or 50 aged inmates igh igh percentage of inmates the the ( see I, SPACE 30% inmates inmates is 25 years % with with the highest percentage of inmates aged 50 or over. 7 . 4 2 25% % % 0 verage length of imprisonment are very low in Norway . % 4 . % 1 % % 7 . 0 5 2 . 2 0 . 9 2 9 % 9 Table 6) 1 9 several of the countries with a low percentage of mature inmates are aged 50 or over (see SPACE I, Table 6). Table I, SPACE (see over or 50 aged 1 8 % . 1 1 % % 20% 1 . 7 % % % % 5 5 % % . 7 1 0 1 1 % % 0 . 6 6 6 6 1 . % % % 3 3 6 6 6 % . 6 1 1 % 5 5 7 7 6 1 1 1 . % 5 . 5 5 1 . 1 1 1 % . % % 4 4 8 1 1 4 . 4 % 3 4 2 2 . 1 1 . 1 1 3 8 % . 1 3 3 3 1 % % 15% 9 2 % . 1 % 1 1 % 4 4 in in on prison the 31 population 1 . 1 1 0 . 9 . 1 1 1 1 — 1 0 1 1 1 1 1 % % 3 aged fifty or fifty aged over 1 . in in countries with at least one million inhabitants 9 9 % 10% % 0 1 .