THE ‘UGLY DUCKLING’ OF CROATIA’S CRIMINAL JUSTICE - THE PRISON SYSTEM IN LIGHT OF DOMESTIC AND EUROPEAN TRENDS

Znanstvena i stručna rasprava o strateški osmišljenom i na empirijskim podatcima utemeljenom upravljanju hrvatskim zatvorskim sustavom zapravo i ne postoji. Povremeno nailazimo na javnu raspravu o situaciji u hrvatskim zatvorima, no ona je uglavnom reakcija na medijski eksploatirane tragične događaje (npr. smrt pritvorenog generala 2011. u Zatvoru u Osijeku) ili navodne skandale (npr. fotografije osuđenika koji u Zatvoru u Valturi vježba golf 2013.). Na posljedično medijsko i javno zgražanje uglavnom slijede štura očitovanja nadležnih institucija, čime se okončava daljnja rasprava jednog u biti potpuno neshvaćena dubljeg problema. Radom autori žele potaknuti otpočinjanje znanstvene i stručne rasprave o hrvatskome zatvorskom sustavu na konceptualnoj, strateškoj i empirijski utemeljenoj razini vodeći računa o hrvatskim specifičnostima u kontekstu europskih zatvorskih trendova. Specijalna prevencija kažnjivih ponašanja pojedinaca njihovom resocijalizacijom u zatvorskim sustavima bitan je doseg kaznenopravne tekovine zapadnih društava. Premda se penalna politika može okarakterizirati kao stalna potraga za novim najboljim rješenjima, zatvorski sustavi imaju važnu ulogu u ostvarivanju svrhe kažnjavanja. No, upitno je ostvaruje li zatvorski sustav svoju svrhu, odnosno je li on svrhovit i u normativnom i u praktičnom pogledu. Odgovor na postavljeno pitanje može biti utemeljen jedino na empirijskim podatcima i evaluacijskim analizama te pretpostavlja konceptualnu i metodološku razradu jasnih pokazatelja \u27svrhovitosti zatvorskog sustava\u27. Takva vrsta odgovora, a za kojim tragaju autori u radu, ima dvostruku funkciju. Osim što služi evaluaciji aktualnog stanja, možebitno i važnije, stvara polazišno uporište za strateško osmišljavanje budućnosti hrvatskoga zatvorskog sustava.There is no scientific and professional discussion on the strategically designed and empirically-based management of the Croatian prison system. We occasionally encounter public debates about the situation in Croatian prisons, but these are mostly reactions to tragic events exploited by the media (e.g. the death of a detained general in Osijek prison in 2011) or alleged scandals (e.g. photos of a prisoner playing golf in Valtura prison in 2013). The consequent media and public outrage is generally followed by brief statements from relevant institutions, which conclude any further discussions of the underlying problem which is fundamentally not understood. The authors aim to encourage the scientific and professional discussion of the Croatian prison system on a conceptual, strategic and empirically-based level, taking into account the Croatian specificities in the context of European prison trends. Special prevention of criminal behaviour of individuals through their re-socialisation in prison systems is a significant achievement of the criminal law legacy of Western societies. Although penal policy can be characterised as a constant search for new-best solutions, prison systems play an important role in achieving the purpose of punishment. However, it is questionable whether the prison system achieves its purpose, both in normative and practical terms. The answer to the question posed must be based on empirical data and evaluation analyses, while it presupposes a conceptual and methodological elaboration of clear indicators of the \u27purposefulness of the prison system\u27. Such an answer, which the authors are looking for in this paper, has a dual function. In addition to serving as an evaluation of the current situation, perhaps even more importantly, it creates a firm starting point for strategically designing the future of the Croatian prison system