- Violence Prevention Network was commissioned by the Federal Ministry for Family Affairs, Senior Citizens, Women and Youth in 2015 as part of the federal programme ‘Live Democracy!’ to enhance existing structures in the field of deradicalisation in German prisons. In cooperation with other German institutions, Violence Prevention Network has also coordinated the joint establishment of nationwide standards and quality criteria for prevention of radicalisation and for deradicalisation in prison and probation.
- Every year, thousands of ideologised juvenile and adult offenders in Germany commit serious and heinous acts of violence. These crimes are motivated by ideologies that legitimise violence, extremism and hostility towards people, as well as by a negative attitude towards people who do not agree with the way they think. The offenders are guided by an image of humanity that contradicts democratic and humanistic values. The majority of prisoners, whose crimes were based on inhuman worldviews, fall under suspicion again after they complete their prison sentence.
- In Germany, there is a definite need for deradicalisation, dissociation and reintegration measures following imprisonment. Violence Prevention Network accommodates this need through its non-confrontational approach to deradicalisation of people in prison. Launched in 2001 as a pilot programme, approximately 100 participants per year on average are now reached in correctional facilities alone targeting right-wing extremism and religious extremism. Generally, they complete the programme in two years or less.
- Violence Prevention Network starts earlier than usual exit programmes. The deradicalisation programme also targets people who have not yet questioned their ideological orientation or whose ideological attitudes have not yet solidified into a comprehensive worldview.
You can find extensive background information on the subjet of “deradicalisation in prisons” in our brochure.
