What is the CJPE?

Launched in 2012 with the aim to create a new method of collaborating, the Criminal Justice Platform Europe (CJPE) is a partnership of three network organisations working in the fields of detention (EuroPris), Probation (Confederation of European Probation, CEP) and European Forum for Restorative Justice ‘to reduce re-offending and the impact of crime and to improve methods of working with victims, communities and offenders throughout Europe.’

Criminal Justice in a Polarised Society

3rd International Criminal Justice Summer Course. Barcelona (2-5 July 20l9)

The course was a combination of workshops, plenary sessions and field visits bringing together participants with a background in prison, probation and restorative justice from a variety of European countries. 

The aim was to offer an unique opportunity for criminal justice colleagues from different jurisdictions to reflect on what impact polarisation is having upon crime.
Extremist views in the media attract huge attention; reactions across society can create anxiety, anger, harm; politics and religion seem more divisive than ever; and professionals in the criminal justice system have to find a way to engage with diverse offenders and prevent paths that may lead to further violence.
By sharing ideas and considering the very latest research and programmes, participants of this summer course were stimulated to engage with the debate on polarisation and to make a positive contribution back home.

Each organisation member of  the CJPE addressed the main topic from a different but complementary angle in one of the 3 parallel workshop sessions:

  • The European Organisation of Prison and Correctional Services (EuroPris) focused on how to manage violent extremist offenders in prison settings
  • The Confederation of European Probation (CEP) explored how to encourage social inclusion in a polarised society
  • The European Forum for Restorative Justice (EFRJ) will look how to engage communities and transform conflicts in polarised societies.

Methods included training, presentations, discussions among the participants as well as local visits. The aim was to examine key practice issues, inspire new thinking, promote cross-fertilization and build new networks to improve services and practice in prisons, probation and restorative justice. The variety of the group, coming from different European realities, provided further opportunities to learn and engage in criminal justice issues.

Flyer CJPE summer course 2019

CJPE summer course 2019 programme

Radicalisation & Violent Extremist Offenders

2nd International Criminal Justice Summer Course. Barcelona (3-6 July 2018)

The summer course was a combination of workshops, plenary sessions and field visits bringing together participants with a background in prison, probation and restorative justice from a variety of European countries. 

The main theme of this year was Radicalisation & Violent Extremist Offenders. Each organisation member of CJPE addressed this topic from a different but complementary angle in one of the 3 parallel workshop sessions:

  • The European Organisation of Prison and Correctional Services (EuroPris) focused on the characteristics of Violent Extremist Offenders (VEO) coming into prisons: assessment, treatment and reintegration
  • The Confederation of European Probation (CEP) explored ‘alternatives to detention’: concrete activities and practices that help to develop understanding and competences for working with VEOs
  • The European Forum for Restorative Justice looked at reimagining Violent Extremism (restoratively): sharing feelings, listening to stories and involving victims as a response to understand radicalisation

Each workshop had a specific focus for understanding and responding to radicalisation.
Methods included training, presentations and discussions among the participants. The aim was to examine key practice issues, inspire new thinking, promote cross-fertilization and build new networks to improve services and practice in prisons, probation and restorative justice. 

Flyer CJPE Barcelona 2018

Booklet CJPE Barcelona 2018

Workshop report reimagining violent extremism restoratively

Workshop report exploring alternatives to detention

Workshop report characteristics of VEO

Radicalisation | Desistance Engaging Offenders to Change

1st International Criminal Justice Summer Course. Barcelona (4-7 July 2017)

The 3-day summer course consisted of 3 workshops tailored for a mixture of prison, probation and restorative justice experts. 

Find below all the information about the course. 

 

Report Workshop on Radicalisation_CJ Summer Courses

Report Workshop on Engaging Offenders to Change_CJ Summer Courses

Report Workshop on Desistance_CJ Summer Courses

Workshop on Desistance_Session 1

Workshop on Desistance_Session 2

Workshop on Desistance_Session 3 Working alliance

Workshop on Desistance_Session 4 Experiencing

Workshop on Desistance_Session 5 Conclusions

Workshop on Engaging offenders to change Delaney

Workshop on Engaging offenders to change Chapman

Plenary 1_Co-producing desistance_ towards a sense of ‘we-ness’_Beth Weaver

Plenary 2_Reintegrating Violent Extremist Offenders_Liesbeth van der Heide

Plenary 3_How Restorative Values Support Engagement,Desistance and Deradicalisation_Tim Chapman

Expert seminar on the implementation of the victim's directive

Brussels, February 2017

The Criminal Justice Platform Europe (CJPE) organised an expert seminar on the implementation of the Victims’ Directive on 23 February 2017 in Brussels. The focus was on Art. 25 and 26, respectively on training of professionals and lay people and cooperation between services in order to provide better support and protection to victims of crime across Europe.

The seminar encouraged experts to discuss how to develop victim awareness within their services and better collaboration between organisations. 62 professionals from 18 different countries attended the seminar. 

On this occasion the European Forum for Restorative Justice (EFRJ) released its latest publication, the ‘PRACTICE GUIDE FOR RJ SERVICES: The Victims’ Directive – Challenges and opportunities for restorative justice‘ together with the briefing paper proposed few months ago. 

The seminar was chaired by Annemieke Wolthuis, vice-chair of the EFRJ Board. 

SPEAKERS: 

  • REGINA HERNANDEZ: European Judicial Training team, European Commission
  • LEVENT ALTAN: Executive Director Victim Support Europe
  • ROBERTO MORENO:  Head of Adults Justice Service at the Ministry of Labour and Justice of the Basque Government
  • GERDJAN HOEKENDIJK: Chair of the European Network on Victims’ Rights and head Victim policy at the Dutch Ministry of Security and Justice
  • BRUNILDA PALI Researcher at KU Leuven Institute of Criminology – EFRJ
  • CHRISTOPHE DE MUYLDER: Spokesperson of a Belgian collective of families of murdered children

WORKSHOPS

GUSTAVO DUARTE:  Victim support service APAV, Portugal – on Training of professionals
BENJAMIN SAYOUS : French Institute for Restorative Justice IFJR – on Building cooperation between sectors via training on restorative justice
NIKICA HAMER VIDMAR: Ministry of Justice Croatia, Independent Service for Victims and Witness Support – on State of implementation of the Victims Directive in Croatia
ISABELLE VANDERHOEVEN: Department of Justice Houses, Flemish Government, Belgium – on Judicial victim support
ESTHER KLAASSEN: Gevangenenzorg Netherlands – on the European project ‘Building Bridges’
RADIM BURES: Vice-president of the Probation and Mediations Service of the Czech Republic – on the Project ‘Why me? II’
MALIN ISAKSSON & STINA SJöDIN: HR expert & senior advisor at the Swedish Prison and Probation Service – No offence while in prison
JANNEKE DE VISSER: Dutch Probation Service – on Training probation workers to increase victim awareness among offenders

You can find below some of the presentations of the plenary sessions  and workshops as well as the practice guide and the briefing paper. 

 

Practice guide "RJ in the victim's directive"

European Forum for Restorative Justice briefing paper "RJ in the victim's directive"

ROBERTO MORENO

GERDJAN HOEKENDIJK

BRUNILDA PALI

CHRISTOPHE DE MUYLDER

Workshop "No offence while in prison"

Workshop "Training probation workers to increase victim awareness among offenders"

Workshop "Building bridges"

Workshop "Why me? II"

Workshop "Judicial victim support"

Workshop "State of implementation of the Victims Directive in Croatia"

Workshop "Building cooperation between sectors via training on restorative justice"

Workshop "Training of professionals"

images from the seminar on victim's directive

Workshop on alternatives to detention.

Barcelona, November 2016

The Criminal Justice Platform Europe organised the workshop ALTERNATIVES TO DETENTION on 3 November 2016 in Barcelona (Spain).

The main organiser of this event was the Confederation of European Probation (CEP). The workshop enabled experts in the field of criminal justice to consider the content and implications of the revised European Rules on Community Sanctions and Measures of the Council of Europe and to consider the latest developments in alternatives to detention across Europe’s prison and probation systems. The event was a combination of presentations and participative workshops.

 

CJPE programme Barcelona November 2016

Conference on radicalisation and violent extremism

Barcelona, April 2016.

The conference was organised by EuroPris in collaboration with its CJPE’s partners, CEP and European Forum for Restorative Justice, and with support of the Centre for Legal Studies of the Ministry of Justice of Catalonia. The conference focused on radicalisation and violent extremism in Europe, in particular on these issues in prisons, probation and the community and the transfer of radicalised offenders from prison back into society. 

CJPE agenda Barcelona April 2016

JUROVA

CJPE MEETS THE EU COMMISSONER JOUROVÁ

Brussels, February 2016

The 4th of February 2016, the European Commissioner Ms Vĕra Jourová received the Criminal Justice Platform Europe in Brussels to discuss about fighting radicalisation in Europe.

International seminar

Brussels, December 2015

The Criminal Justice Platform Europe organised an international seminar in Brussels on 3 December 2015. The seminar was about the implementation of three Framework Decisions (2008/909/JHA, 2008/947/JHA and 2009/829/JHA) on the mutual recognition of judicial decisions on custodial sentences or measures involving deprivation of liberty, probation decisions and alternative sanctions and supervision measures as an alternative to provisional detention.

Programme seminar CJPE Brussels 2015

Report seminar CJPE Brussels 2015

Seminar on "Radicalisation and Violent Extremism"

Barcelona, October 2015.

The Criminal Justice Platform Europe (CJPE) in collaboration with the Centre for Legal Studies and Specialised Training (depending on the Department of Justice of Catalonia) organised an international seminar entitled  RADICALISATION AND VIOLENT EXTREMISM – Disengagement, prevention, monitoring’  in Barcelona on 14 October 2015.

The aim of the seminar was to approach all kind of radicalisation (based on ideological or religious thoughts) that implies to accept the use of violence, or other unlawful means, against others for fulfilling the own goals. The seminar put the accent on the conceptualization and on practical answers to this phenomenon, presenting practical existing experiences displayed all around Europe.

 

Final summary report CJPE Barcelona 2015

Plenary session 1

Plenary session 2

Plenary session 3

Workshop 1

Workshop 2

Workshop 3

Workshop 4

International seminar "What works in European criminal justice: joint visions for a better criminal justice in Europe"

Brussels, September 2014

The CJPE organized an international seminar with experts and policy makers in Brussels, on September 18, 2014, on the latest evidence for effectively work with victims and offenders.

The international seminar brought together experts and policy makers interested in improving our current criminal justice systems for victims and offenders, as well as for all European citizens.

Programme seminar CJPE Brussels 2014

Seminar on "International Perspectives on the implementation of the EU’s Directive on Victims"

Barcelona, May 2014

On 25 October 2012, the European Directive 2012/29/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council establishing minimum standards on the rights, support and protection of victims of crime was adopted. All Member States were required to comply with this Directive by 16 November 2016: this was a challenging task shared by governments and administrations as well as civil society and citizens.

CJPE organized this seminar to assess the current situation for victims of crime in different jurisdictions and to identify what are the following steps to take in order to make sure that the Directive will be implemented, considering the role of the different criminal justice agencies.

CJPE wanted to approach the Directive from three different views: prisons, probation and restorative justice. Among the other speakers, Katrien Lauwaert, the project coordinator of the European co-funded project “Desistance and Restorative Justice: mechanisms for desisting from crime within restorative justice practices“, presented a paper on the the practical application of the Directive from a restorative justice perspective.

 

Flyer CJPE Seminar Barcelona 2014