In “Corrections Reform in Kosovo: A Qualitative Study of Canadian Corrections Advisers’ Experiences in a Post-Conflict Environment,” Danielle Murdoch reports the findings of a case study of 14 Canadian corrections advisers deployed in Kosovo between 1999 and 2006. These corrections advisers entered Kosovo after the retreat of the former Yugoslavian President, Slobodan Milosevic, and his troops with the goal of updating the Kosovo Correctional Service (KCS) system to bring it in line with international human rights standards. Five major themes were identified after analyzing the interviews of the corrections advisers. After identifying these themes from the research Murdoch makes six accompanying policy recommendations.
The first theme that Murdoch identifies is the importance of local context. She emphasizes the necessity of adapting corrections reform to respect local processes and values. One example of this type of adaptation has to do with how many inmates occupy a cell. The Canadian ideal is single-bunked accommodations. In Kosovo, however, putting one person into a cell is considered torturous, so the local norm was twenty people to one cell.
The second theme was the lack of resources and funding for corrections reform. Murdoch explains that the lack of funding is due to “the international community[‘s] prefer[ence] to engage in reform activities that would benefit the non-offending public,” such as rebuilding schools and hospitals. This lack of resources creates obstacles to recruiting and retaining corrections officers.
The lack of resources also contributes to the third theme: widespread corruption. Participants reported that UN salaries for corrections officers were not only low in general, but also lower than the salaries for police officers, indicating to potential corrections officers that their jobs were not as important as those of the police.
The challenge of obtaining safe, secure confinement for prisoners was the fourth theme. Many correctional facilities were unusable due to damage from bombs and cruise missiles. There was also a deficit of corrections officers in Kosovo, so prisoners were often being watched by soldiers who were not trained to take care of prisoners.
The fifth theme was lack of expertise among corrections officers. Many of the corrections officers brought in by the UN were from countries that did not uphold international human rights standards in their prisons and were therefore incapable of providing adequate training and guidance to the local corrections officers. Additionally, nepotism in appointments of “experts” and “international advisors” led to a lack of expertise in the reform efforts as a whole.
Murdoch concludes with six policy recommendations based off the five themes identified by the participants. She recommends (1) ensuring that local context informs corrections reform decisions, (2) fostering local ownership of the reform, (3) developing local capacities, (4) excercising patience, (5) according high priority and funding to corrections reform, and (6) revising deployment practices to ensure personnel are knowledgeable and suited to the mission.
NOTE: This summary is produced by the Rule of Law Collaborative, not by the original author(s).