Kosovo

Online events on probation services and prison management

During the last quarter of 2020, the cooperation between IRZ and the Ministry of Justice of Kosovo concentrated on the areas of probation services and prison management. The main focus was on how the relevant authorities work together to provide probation services, the explanation of the advantages of suspended sentencing with probation, and the specific issues surrounding juvenile detention. IRZ has also succeeded in using the online format to expand on the existing trusting working relationship, which pays particular attention to the area of juvenile criminal law.

In cooperation with the department for probation services and regional probation offices, three separate online round table discussions were held with different participant groups in the regions of Pristina, Prizren and Mitrovica. These events allowed for a broad exchange of experiences and also took the regional particularities in Kosovo into account. The round table discussions covered the following topics, amongst others:

• the function and role of probation
• specific features of the application of probation in juvenile criminal law
• the supervision of probation in practice: cooperation between judges, public prosecutors and probation services

IRZ was represented by the following experts from the relevant professional groups:

• Alexander Conrad, a judge at the Local Court of Oberhausen
• Michael Grunwald, a senior public prosecutor at the Berlin Public Prosecutor’s Office
• Stefan Thier from the department of social services for justice, support for ex-offenders and accommodation offering therapy at the Ministry of Justice, Europe and Consumer Protection for the state of Schleswig-Holstein

This combination of experts led to a comprehensive, detailed and practice-oriented exchange with Kosovan colleagues. 

Online seminars on “young people in the prison system”

At the express request of the department for prison management at the Ministry of Justice of Kosovo, two online seminars were held on “Dealing with young drug addicts” and “Dealing with young people with psychiatric problems”.

Both events were led by an experienced team of experts appointed by IRZ:

• Katja Liebmann, Head of social therapy at the largest juvenile detention centre in Germany at Hameln,
• Siegfried Löprick, Chairman of the youth welfare service, Jugendhilfe Göttingen e.V., with many years of experience in working with the prison management system in Kosovo.

Both seminars featured an open exchange involving all participants and lively, comprehensive discussions.