(IR)RECONCILABILITY OF LIFE IMPRISONMENT AND
HUMAN RIGHTS Cover Image

(NE)POMIRLJIVOST KAZNE DOŽIVOTNOG ZATVORA I LJUDSKIH PRAVA
(IR)RECONCILABILITY OF LIFE IMPRISONMENT AND HUMAN RIGHTS

Author(s): Vladica Ilić
Subject(s): Human Rights and Humanitarian Law, Penal Policy, EU-Legislation
Published by: Правни факултет Универзитета у Београду
Keywords: life imprisonment; human rights standards; European Court of Human Rights; prohibition of abuse; punishment;

Summary/Abstract: Since May 2019, Serbia has joined the majority of European countries which have the sentence of life imprisonment in their criminal justice systems. Despite the refusal of the competent authorities to hold a public hearing on the issue, the introduction of life imprisonment, excluding the possibility of conditional release of convicted persons for certain offenses punishable by this sentence, was met with noticeable interest and activism by representatives of the domestic and international professional public. Particular attention in the paper is devoted to human rights standards relating to life imprisonment, mainly stemming from the case-law of the European Court of Human Rights. The paper analyzes the possibility of application of human rights standards within the current criminal law legislation. At the end of the paper, the author points to possible de lege ferenda directions that could represent an alternative to life imprisonment, considering it a serious challenge for protection of the dignity of convicted persons.

  • Issue Year: 2019
  • Issue No: 2
  • Page Range: 156-173
  • Page Count: 18
  • Language: Serbian