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Jordan Hanevik
Milda Halvorson
Scandinavia and the Global Age
15 April 2013
The Norwegian Prison System
In July of 2011, the social laboratory that is Scandinavia (in particular, Norway)
suffered a tragedy that is known as Europes largest mass murder by a single human being that
was committed in time of peace. At the age of 33, Anders Behring Breivik and his extremist
right-wing tendencies led him to place a van armed with bombs near a government building in
Oslo killing eight and furthermore shooting 69 citizens, mostly teenagers, on the island of Utya
(The Local). Brieviks vicious bloodbath, resulting in 77 total Norwegian deaths, ordered him a
21 year prison sentence which is the maximum amount of time one can spend in prison in
Norway. According to TheLocal.no, life in prison was abolished in Norway in 1971 because of a
nationwide desire to rehabilitate and prepare criminals for integration into life outside bars
rather than focusing solely on punishment and discipline. Though Norway was required to
implement life sentences for crimes against humanity and genocide in order to suffice
international law, the country has yet to use these and most likely will not.
As a staple case for investigating the way Norway treats the criminally insane, many
outsiders internationally believed that the sentencing of Breivik was mild and naive of the
well-known liberal society (The Local). Living in a country that presses the death penalty on
crimes of much less caliber than this, my interests on this topic lie strongly in the extremely
humane rulings that Breivik received. His case prompts many questions about the Norwegian
prison systems, which can directly reflect on their culture which has strong beliefs that exist to
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assure all citizens are functioning members of society. Unlike nations that currently use life
sentences and the death penalty as methods of crime abolishment, the way that Norway helps
their most deviant citizens to grow and regain meaning in life is crucial to examine whilst
pondering the cross-cultural differences in the purpose and end-result of incarceration. The
innovative and strongly successful techniques seen in Norwegian prison systems can be
attributed to their strong emphasis in community that is realistic and accommodating, citizens
nationwide entitlement to education, and an importance in continuing to keep their prisons
successful in the future.
As a country that takes pride in equality of its citizens, Norway treats their prisoners like
adults with simply a loss of liberty. Norway operates its prisons under four categories: high
security, low security, halfway houses, and outside prisons with special conditions, for example
accommodating those with mental or physical needs (Norden). After time is spent in closed high
security prisons (prisons that are not open to the public), criminals are often moved to open
prisons (accessible to the public) that provide the opportunity to adapt, again, to a life of freedom
and moral obligation to society. The main difference between the open and closed prisons is
ultimately the level of security implemented. In preparation for what the Norwegian government
would consider hopeful improvement and release, those who are in open prisons must claim their
own responsibility, work hard to gain trust from others, and incorporate ideals of responsible
behavior. This fights the notion that convicts, for all extensive purposes, should be responsible
for their actions in the form of similar treatment regardless of crimes or cooperation. Though
there will always be a need for high-security prisons for the insane such as Brevik, the amount of
law-breaking citizens in need of high-security is much lower and far-fetched than what can be
accounted for in the outrageous amount of costly security used in places like the United States.
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For American citizens who see prisons as idealistic facilities of punishment and keeping
the unsafe from the public, this concept of open prisons is difficult to understand and can often
be reported as luxurious. This can be seen through the media in an image taken by Italian
photographer Marco Di Lauro of an inmate incarcerated south of Oslo at Bastoy, the only
Norwegian prison located on an island. Di Lauros photo depicts the inmate who was convicted
of murder sunbathing outside of his wooden cottage, aesthetically similar to imagery that could
certainly be seen in a Minnesota tourism guide. Daily Mail contributor Pierz Hernu had the
opportunity to ride a ferry to the island of Bastoy to experience some of the inmates such as the
sunbather first hand as well as the staff and environment that Norwegian convicts for a period of
their life call home. When Hernu had an opportunity to interview the man in the photograph, also
known as Nils, he reported that his sixteen year sentence for murder was due to an amphetamine
related shooting. Nils, now happier than ever, spent eight and a half of his years incarcerated in a
closed prison before being moved to Bastoy and is now a trained ferry worker taking courses to
further his education for when his sentence is finished.
Nils describes the typical prison sentence (which is much different from his own) as a
pause in life in which when you leave, you return to the same bad habits that you had before
incarceration (Daily Mail). Rather than taking the life pause, the social experiment happening at
Bastoy has individuals living incredibly similar to those on the outside. This self-actualizing
ideal held by Norwegian prisoners of gain rather than having nothing to lose could possibly
have something to do with their seven hour work day, typically in a place chosen by the inmate
where their abilities can be used to their best. In a community such as Bastoy, prisoners must
work individually and also as a community with others to continue to increase their own worth
and likelihood to succeed on the outside. Unlike the United States and their token economies that
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provide simple rewards for good behavior, this idea of community expansion puts the
Norwegian prisoner in a much more humane place. The staff at the prison understands well that
in order to be an example for their inmates, they must show respect to them, and in return will
most likely see the inmates showing stronger values of respect towards others and themselves.
Good behavior is just a start to a continuing effort to better the self, and in return better the
society.
In connection to the community seen in Norwegian prison system that is more realistic
and accommodating than ever before, the importance of education attributes to the strikingly low
recidivism rate that most nations are jealous of. Norway makes sure to respect the rights of all
citizens, even those who have committed crimes. Other than the common rights of healthcare,
social services, and employment, education is a right that is not to be disarmed to someone who
has been removed of their liberty. According to the Norden.edu report Nordic Prison
Education, education provided to inmates is to be implemented in accordance with the
guidelines pertaining to, at large, the societys own system. This report states that other than
comprehensive school which can be destructive to ones morale, 54% of those who study enroll
in upper-secondary school for subjects such as business, engineering, and mechanical trades.
Classes that pertain to individual interests, similar to those at Norwegian folk schools, are offered
in subjects such as arts, crafts, foreign-language, and computer studies.
This type of education seen in Norwegian prisons is not under any type of national
curricula; seemingly providing those incarcerated to have the choice as to if they would like to
further their education. Focusing on the life after of those who have been in prison is more
important to the government, who believes in the individuals complete personal responsibility
towards reintegration and success after their sentence is done. In a study reported by Norden in
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2005, students enrolled were pleased with prison school and contained very positive attitudes.
One flaw in the education implemented in the Nordic prison systems is that it is not quite defined
as clearly as it should, which is continually being worked on by legislation. This flaw seems
minimal in the essence that Norway is ridding from the notion that prisons should consist of
places of punishment and pain rather than a place to better ones self with proper access to
education.
The thought of working with, living near, or even being in the same room as a prisoner
can provoke complete fear for those who encompass a crime free existence. Even as a small
child, I was taught to be fearful of those who had wronged the law. Now that I am older and the
fear has slowly subsided, I am aware that they are everywhere; working, living, breathing, just as
everybody else. When comparing Norway to a place such as the United States with a much
larger population, it is hard to encompass the meanings behind Norways indescribably lower
crime rate and more importantly, their collective acceptance towards individuals in general. The
humane and constrictive methods seen in Norwegian prisons, such as a gained sense of
community and entitlement to education, exist as qualitative support to the lessened amount of
crime.
These unique methods seen in the social laboratory of Scandinavia seem to provide a
better quality of life and the ability to gain self-worth for those who might otherwise endure a
lifetime of self and societal punishment for one explicit act of wrongdoing. More importantly,
the individuals who leave prison and make something of themselves are not only contributing to
the self but to the society. What can be taken from knowledge of the faulty prison system in
America is that treating humans negatively for the reinforcement of society based on what they
do rather than who they are has caused many problems. As a region with respect for the
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individual and even larger respect for all of the individuals that make a whole, it is crucial to
observe that Norway understands that elder ideals of punishment effect more than just the person
involved.




















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Works Cited
Hernu, Piers. "Norway's Controversial 'cushy Prison' Experiment - Could It Catch on in the
UK?" Mail Online. Daily Mail, 25 July 2011. 15 Apr. 2013.
<http://www.dailymail.co.uk/home/moslive/article-1384308/Norways-controversial-
cushy-prison-experiment--catch-UK.html>.
"Norway Relieved after Breivik Verdict." Thelocal.no. The Local: Norway's News In English, 27
Aug. 2012. 15 Apr. 2013. <http://www.thelocal.no/page/view/norway-relieved-after-
breivik-verdict>.
Schenck, Linda. "Nordic Prison Education: A Lifelong Learning Perspective." Norden.org. 26
May 2005. 15 Apr. 2013. <http://www.norden.org/en/publications/publikationer/2005-
526/at_download/publicationfile>.
"Why Norway's Maximum Sentence Is Just 21 Years." Thelocal.no. The Local: Norway's News
In English, 24 Aug. 2012. Web. 15 Apr. 2013. <http://www.thelocal.no/page/view/why-
norways-maximum-sentence-is-just-21-years>.