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 Serbian prison staff trained to apply VEP-specific instruments and rehabilitation program

@ Council of Europe

A 4-day Training of Trainers (ToT) on assessment and management of Violent Extremist Prisoners (VEPs) for a group of 10 prison staff – future trainers, coming from the Special Detention Facility in Pozarevac and the County Prison in Belgrade took place in Vrsac, in Serbia.

The trainees increased their understanding on the utilisation of the VEP specific screening and risk and needs assessment tools and the individual rehabilitation methodology developed by the Action’s Working Group under the Beneficiary-specific component for Serbia. The ToT comprised on transferring the theoretical knowledge, and practical skills and methods that helped the trainees enhance their skills essential for the application of these instruments in practise and disseminating the know-how to their peers. They also learned how to approach and systematize information on VEP’s behaviour in an objective and evidence-based manner, how to formulate and create an individual treatment plan and motivate prisoners to actively take part in their rehabilitation.

The ToT laid the groundwork for preparing the trainees, comprised of prison management, security and rehabilitation and treatment service from both prisons, for the upcoming piloting phase in Serbian prisons due to begin in September 2021.

This hybrid activity was implemented under the auspices of the Action „Enhancing penitentiary capacities in addressing radicalisation in prisons in the Western Balkans “, Horizontal Facility for the Western Balkans and Turkey (2019 – 2022), funded by the European Union and Council of Europe and implemented by Council of Europe.

Western Balkans 1 June 2021