Chapter 4: Punishment

                              THINGS IN COMMON

                            THINGS DIVERSE

For serious crimes, prison is the universal sanction, applied more than any other punishment, and regardless of the legal system or level of development of a country.

There are wide variations in the prison rates of various countries, and these do not appear to be dependent on the amount of crime in a country.

There is no overall world trend towards increase in prison population.

There are vast differences among countries.  Some showed enormous increases in prison populations, and others showed decreases. More countries reported increases than decreases.  Countries in transition especially reported increases in prison populations and admissions.

Parole is not widely use throughout the world.

Parole is used mostly by developed Western countries. There have been large increases in use of parole by some East European countries.

A small number of countries report statistics that suggest prison populations that exceed their prison capacity.  There is no economic or development feature that distinguishes this group of countries.

Developing countries tend to have more prisoners awaiting trial than do developed countries.

The movement towards restriction and abolition of the death penalty is not unidirectional.

Abolitionist countries are predominantly in Europe (both West and East) and Latin America.

The fine is the most frequently used non-custodial sanction regardless of level of development of the country.

Non-custodial sanctions are used less in the regions of Africa, Latin America, and Asia.  However, the informal justice systems of many developing countries apply non-custodial sanctions without their being recorded by the criminal justice system.

The fine is the most frequently used non-custodial sanction regardless of level of development of the country.

Non-custodial sanctions are used less in the regions of Africa, Latin America, and Asia.  However, the informal justice systems of many developing countries apply non-custodial sanctions without their being recorded by the criminal justice system.

Availability and use of non-custodial sanctions are policy choices.

Greater use of non-custodial sanctions does not lead to less use of prison, or vice-versa.

Public attitudes to punishment generally conform to the actual sentencing options available.

In developing countries and countries in transition the public displays a marked preference for prison as a punishment.