Balkan Criminology Penology Panel - Special Panel Celebrating 25 Years of ESC

Session Submission Type: Pre-arranged Panel

Abstract

This panel offers a unique comparative platform for presenting penology research across the Balkan region and neighbouring countries, drawing on recent findings from the forthcoming volume of Mapping the Penological Landscape of the Balkans: A Regional Study on Sentencing and Imprisonment with a Critical Analysis of Current Penal Policies. By examining national contexts - such as Croatia, Slovenia, Turkey and Romania, but also imprisonment trends across 13 Balkan countries - the panel sheds light on the region’s multifaceted penal policies, legislative shifts and the socio-legal surroundings which shape contemporary responses to crime. In doing so, it aims to illuminate trends, highlight country-specific legislative, and situate penal practices within broader historical and political developments.
The discussion will feature five presentations, each focused on a national penal policy and practice. One focuses on the phenomenon of recidivism, emphasizing how discrepancies in its definition and scope complicate cross-national comparisons. Another presentation investigates the recent and ongoing changes in Turkey’s penal landscape, spotlighting prison overcrowding and evolving legal frameworks. Presentation from Slovenia traces penological research in that country from its Yugoslav era origins to post-independence developments, drawing on over 100 studies to highlight prisoner reintegration. The Romanian perspective reveals shifting legislative priorities - from reducing penalties to more recent calls for harsher sanctions. Finally, drawing on Council of Europe statistics to examine imprisonment trends across 13 Balkan countries from 2005 to 2023, final presentation reveals a post-2014 divergence from broader European rates, classifies penal systems into entry-driven versus duration-driven models, identifies an “infrastructure-staff paradox,” and ultimately demonstrates how contemporary Balkan penal policies stem from distinct political, legal, and demographic determinants rather than a shared regional heritage.
By integrating normative analysis with empirical data, the panel offers an in-depth understanding of penological practices in mentioned jurisdictions.

Subtopic

• Topic 5: Social Control and Criminal Justice / Imprisonment, Prisons, Prison Life and Effects of Imprisonment (Prisons WG)

Chair

• Hans-Jörg Albrecht, Max Planck Institute for the Study of Crime, Security and Law; Balkan Criminology

Individual Presentations

• History of the Slovenian Penological Research - Gorazd Meško, University of Maribor; Rok Hacin, University of Maribor

• Imprisonment in Romania. Trends of the Legislation and Case law in the Post-Communist Era - Andra Roxana Trandafir, University of Bucharest

• Presentation of Türkiye Chapter in Mapping the Penological Landscape of the Balkans - Selman Dursun, İstanbul University Law Faculty; Yağmur Altay, İstanbul University Law Faculty

• Beyond Regional Identity: Imprisonment Trends and System Divergence in the Balkans (2005-2023) - Marcelo F. Aebi, University of Lausanne; Edoardo Cocco, University of Lausanne; Mélanie M. Tiago, University Lusófona, Lisbon, Portugal

• Recidivism in the Balkans: A Normative Approach to Trends and Variations - Lea Feuerbach, Central European Academy; Balkan Criminology