The Swedish government said on Wednesday that it was expecting heavy pressure on its own jails in the coming years, investigating the possibility of sending some prisoners to serve its sentences abroad.
Sweden has fought in recent years to rein in score-setting firing and bombing between rival criminal gangs.
Criminals are often young teenagers who are hired as contract killers because they are under 15 years of age, the age of criminal responsibility in Sweden.
Prime Minister ULF Christson’s central-right minority government, supported in Parliament by anti-immigration Sweden Democrats, came to power in 2022 with a vow to strict on crime.
“One concrete result of this change is that more people will be disorganized and prolonged, which will increase the pressure on the Swedish jail system,” said in a press conference on Tuesday, the Minister of Justice Gunnar Stramer said at a press conference.
The Stramer spoke as he got the government on the viability of prisoners serving time abroad.
“Our recommendation is that it should be done within the European Union or within the Schengen region,” Matias Wahlstad said, who led the investigation, without giving any specific examples.
This practice has already been adopted by some countries including Norway, Belgium and Denmark.
Wahlsteedt said that negotiations between Sweden and concerned countries would have to be approved by Parliament.
The Seco Trade Union, which represents the jail staff among others, said on Tuesday that it opposed the government’s plan.
“Public services should not be outsourced in other countries. It is a matter of legal requirements, but it is also about selling state activities and running under private management,” Christer Hallkwist, Jail Employees in Seco Are responsible for labor talks for. , Said in a statement.
“The better situation for employees and more prison places in Sweden is to solve problems in Swedish jail and probation service,” he said.
In recent weeks, Sweden has seen an increase in violence, with more than 30 bombing since the beginning of the year.
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