HF II Regional - Enhancing penitentiary capacities in addressing radicalisation in prisons

As part of the second phase of the European Union and the Council of Europe co-funded cooperation framework “Horizontal Facility for the Western Balkans and Turkey” (Horizontal Facility II), the Council of Europe implemented a Regional Action on “Enhancing penitentiaries capacities in addressing radicalization in prisons in Western Balkans”. The Action was implemented in close cooperation with the Ministries of Justice and the P/CVE coordination bodies of Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo*, Republic of Serbia, Montenegro, North Macedonia…. The Action included a wide spectrum of other national stakeholders and civil society organizations active in the penitentiary field and countering violent extremism and radicalisation in prisons.

The main aim of the Action was to enhance regional security by improving the inter-institutional exchange of knowledge and good practices in the region in respect of radicalization in prisons, with a view on providing penitentiary system staff with necessary standards, tools and instruments needed to respond appropriately. Another important goal was to empower in-county multi-agency coordination to counter radicalization in prison and to provide adequate post-penal support to released violent extremist offenders.

The Action also assisted the national authorities to ensure that the application of the tools and mechanisms on national level with regards to addressing radicalisation in prisons further strengthens in light of the identified good practices in the region.

The Action’s duration was set at 36 months and it iwas completed by 31 December 2022, with an overall budget of 2,000,000.000 Euros.

* This designation is without prejudice to positions on status, and is in line with UNSCR 1244 and the ICJ Opinion on the Kosovo Declaration of Independence.

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Back Prison and Probation Professionals in the Western Balkans trained on radicalisation prevention

@ Council of Europe

A selected group of 145 prison and probation professionals, coming from all six Western Balkans Beneficiaries[1], are improving their knowledge on addressing radicalisation in prisons and disengaging offenders from violence by undertaking the HELP course on Radicalisation Prevention.

The course was adapted to the specific local circumstances of each Beneficiary and launched respectively in the period between February and April 2021. The last virtual launching event was held on 8 April 2021 in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Prison and probation practitioners from North Macedonia and Kosovo have already completed the course, whereas the others will finalise it by June 2021.

Thanks to this online course, the prison and probation professionals enhance their understanding of the relevant international standards and domestic legal framework. Furthermore, they acquire practical skills on identification of radicalisation and management of violent extremist behaviour, useful for their day-to-day work. Once the course is completed in all Beneficiaries, it will be opened for additional number of prison and probation professionals from the region, thus maximizing its outreach to the professionals dealing with prevention and countering violent extremism.

The HELP course on Radicalisation Prevention was launched in all six Western Balkans Beneficiaries within the scope of the Regional action “Enhancing penitentiary capacities in addressing radicalisation in prisons in the Western Balkans” that is a part of the joint European Union/Council of Europe programme “Horizontal Facility for the Western Balkans and Turkey 2019-2022”, implemented by the Council of Europe.

[1] Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo*, Montenegro, North Macedonia and Serbia.

* This designation is without prejudice to positions on status, and is in line with UNSCR 1244 and the ICJ Opinion on the Kosovo Declaration of Independence.

Western Balkans 9 April 2021